Hetalias Christmas Miracle Countdown
by DolmaafAmlod
Summary: Gilbert aka Prussia doesn't believe in miracles, something he has confessed to his ever so drunken friends in the bad touch trio. Then on the first december things takes a strange turn for him and perhaps he will learn what Christmas really is all about. New chapter will be up everyday! I don't think the rating will go up.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi world! So today is the first of december and at my place that means a Christmas countdown. Everyday until the 24th an episode come out on TV with a christmas theme. We also get a chocolate-bar for each day. This year however as my sister can't eat chocolate and the christmas countdown completely sucks I decided to write my own. So every day until the 24th I will post a new chapter that I hope you will all enjoy. There are now full on pairings in this apart from hints of SuFin. The reason for this is that I wan't it to be something that everyone can enjoy, not only those who like certain pairings. However there will be many persons interacting in this story which means you probably will find a pairing you like if you squint. For the pairings you don't like you can just keep in memory that it's supposed to be family and friends. Also for those who follow my other stories, Memories of a doomed, concequences of a drunken mistake, Pride and Prejudice and People of Paron, these stories will each have a new chapter posted on the 25th.**

**Rant done!**

* * *

1 of December.

David Jackson was an ordinary young man with nothing special about him, working at a bar called 'The Bar'. He had just turned 23 when he got the job and had been dancing with excitement to finally see a new part of Frankfurt. During his five years behind the bar-desk he had seen quiet a few strange people passing by. However none of them were as strange as the one sitting in front of him. Gilbert Weilschmidt had been coming to the bar at least three times a week without exception during all his years. He always looked the same with tousled white hair, strange scarlet eyes, sickly pale skin and a blue military uniform. He had asked once about it but he only said that it was because he was awesome. Sometime he'd come with two friends to the bar, a French and a Spaniard, who David had learned were his best friends Francis and Antonio. Antonio would sometimes bring a yelling Italian with him as well known as Loviiiii. Other days Gilbert would turn up with two blondes called Matthias and Arthur (though he was also known as eyebrows and Iggy.) Some days although far between he turned up with another italian similar to Lovi and a tall blonde who he learned was Gilbert's younger brother Luddie (or West as he tended to call him) and other days he was there with a quiet boy called Birdie. Regardless if any of those were there with him or not, he had one companion with him no matter day or time. At first David had been very surprised to see that his boss permitted a bird inside but none of his colleagues seemed to mind it. Already during his first night, that's when Gilbert had noticed the new face, he had explained to David how awesome his petbird Gilbird was and that he never left anywhere without him. This night was no different. David smiled at the albino as he stumbled through the door with Francis and Antonio. If their stumbling and flushed faces were anything to go by they had already had quite a few drinks before they got there so he guessed they were just here for a final round. Without even needing to ask, he set a cup of beer, a glass of french wine and the sicilian wine that he knew Antonio enjoyed so much. The three cheered drunkedly at the sight and plopped down on the barstools.  
"Zup Davie!" Gilbert yelled out.  
"Just fine sir, how are you gentlemen today?"  
Francis wiggled his eyebrows suggestively..  
"Perfect but I'm sure you could make it even better."  
Gilbert and Antonio laughed loudly and David more softly.  
"No thank you I'm happy with my wife."  
Francis pouted a little before raising his glass.  
"Let me know when you change your mind. A toast my dear friends!"  
The two other raised their glasses.  
"But to what amigo?"  
"How about only 24 days to Christmas?" David suggested.  
Francis and Antonio seemed happy about that but Gilbert threw his head back in mocking laughter.  
"What ever is so amusing mon Ami?"  
When Gilbert had calmed down and Gilbird was settled on the top of his head he said.  
"I can't believe you want to toast something as unawesome as Christmas!"  
The two other men stared in horror at their friend.  
"How can you say such a thing, apart from valentines, Christmas is the most important holiday of the year!"  
Antonio hummed in approval and Gilbert snorted.  
"What's so awesome about freezing your ass of and waisting money to give people things that they don't want?"  
"But it's more than that amigo. Christmas is about being with the ones you love and remember the birth of baby Jesus."  
"Oui and a time for miracles."  
Gilbert only snorted again.  
"Don't tell me you actually believe in that bull-shit. Baby Jesus who was born beneath a twinkly star among dirty animals."  
Antonio looked a little deflated.  
"I thought you believed in god."  
Gilbert clenched his jaw and stared down in the beer.  
"Try taking things seriously will yah? If there were miracles and a God, the good people would live and the bad would die. Does it look that way to you?"  
The mood had dropped, something David only saw once a year on the date Gilbert lost someone. He had never told him who it was but he always spoke fondly of him.  
"It was his time." Francis said softly, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. Gilbert shrugged it off.  
"I know it was his time dammit! But it proves my point. Praying to God won't give me a miracle!" he yelled out causing the entire room to silence. Without a blink, Gilbert slammed far too much money of the bardesk and stomped outside. After a short look, Francis and Antonio paid as well and hurried after him. Another interesting day for David.  
x-x-x-x-x  
Gilbert could hear the other two following him but he was in no mood of talking to them. He knew the city better than they did so it didn't take him long to get rid of his stalkers. He felt cold and the falling snow was penetrating through his coat. A thought crossed his mind and he pulled out his hand from the warmth of the pockets and pulled of his fine leather glove. His hand was as pale as ever, fading scars from old times lining it, and slim fingers twitched at the cold. He would never admit it to anyone but he knew he had on the verge of feminine hands. They weren't as bad as Arthur's thanks to a constant use of sword in the oldern days, but the lack of any proper usage for the past 50 or so years had made a difference. He looked at his palm where a small slit was still open tainting the rest of his hand in a red substance. It had been on complete accident when he was cooking in the kitchen the other day but it had yet to heal.  
"Yeah there's really no such thing as miracles."  
As he stood there, he didn't notice that red-cloaked figure moving towards him until it was too late. Before he knew what had happened, something collided with his head and he lost consciousness.

Se ya'll tomorrow!


	2. Chapter 2

**Goodmorning everyone! So here at my place it's the second of december now and it's a beautiful winder-wonderland outside my window! Enjoy chapter two 3**

* * *

2 dec. Ludwig groaned in annoyance when a knock brought him out of his dreams. A look at the alarmclock told him that it was barely passed four in the morning. That was too soon even for him, especially since he had been up with paperwork until 2 am. That meant he had gotten two hours of sleep at most. He buried his head in the pillow tiredly and tried to ignore it in favor of sleep, Gilbert sure to be home by now so he could open. The knocking persisted however and it didn't seem like Gilbert was going to get up and open. With a tired grumble he forced himself out of bed and down the stairs. Blackie, Berlitz and Alster all waited at the door, looking at him expectantly. He pushed them out of the way and opened the door.

"Finland?"  
Tino smiled brightly at him despite the early hour.  
"Oh goodmorning Mr. Germany! I'm so glad you're up! I was starting to think that I had to break in or something and wake you up! Anywho you're up so I can give him to you!"  
Germany raised his hands tiredly.  
"What are you talking about? Our meeting is not in another four days."  
Tino's smile faltered as he collected his thoughts.  
"Oh that's right! So Su-San and I decided to come here a few days earlier and enjoy the lovely city of Berlin with Peter and..." He paused. "I'm not sure how to tell you this, but I've got something for you in my car." he motioned for the white Ford that stood parked in front of his house. Ludwig sighed and made to close the door the the dogs wouldn't sneak out. During the short walk, Tino continued to ramble.  
"I have no idea how it happened but I'm quite certain it is him, I mean he's practically the same...!"  
Ludwig chose to tune him out. He had an irking feeling that they were talking about his idiotic brother. He was in for a chock. Tino unlocked the car and leaned in to pick something up. The sight made Ludwig's jaw drop. He had the same silver hair that glistened in the dim light of the streetlamps, he had the same fair skin and Ludwig could guess there was a pair of scarlet eyes behind the closed eyelids. Yet something was not right. Craddled and snoozing softly in Tino's arm was a child who could barely be more than seven. Tino smiled brightly.  
" The clothes are perhaps a little too big for him, we just put him in some of the things Peter brought with him so he'd at least wear something."  
Ludwig only stared at the child and wondered idly if his sleep deprived mind had something to do with this.  
"W-where did you find him?"  
"Well I couldn't sleep so I took a midnight walk and there he was, just lying at the sidewalk. I have his uniform back here as well."  
Ludwig nodded numbly reached a hesitant hand towards his brother before retracting it again as if Gilbert's body was on flames.  
"Will you two be alright?" Tino asked.  
Ludwig nodded again.  
" I g-guess I should take h-him inside." he muttered unsure of what exactly to do with himself. He had no experiences with how to deal with children other than they were the ones crying in the mall for things they couldn't have. On top of that he knew little of how Gilbert had been as a child but he had a feeling he was worse than he was now. Feeling extremely awkward he reached out and carried Gilbert the way Tino had and allowed Tino to place the uniform upon him. He said goodbye stiffly to the other nation before heading inside. He placed Gilbert on the couch in lack of knowledge of what to do before reaching for the phone and dialing a number.  
"Bonjour? Is that you Gilbert?" Francis sounded almost relieved.  
"Nein it's me Germany. I thought you were with him last night." he hissed out, praying it was quiet enough not to wake Gilbert up.  
"We did..." Francis began sounding kind of uncomfortable. "But then he got upset and left and we couldn't find him. When he didn't answer his phone we just prayed that he had gotten home safely. Is he not home yet?" there was concern lacing his voice now.  
"Ja he is home but..." he stopped himself. "I have to go."  
During his short talk with Francis the dogs had sniffed at the child, curious as to why he smelled like their pale master. Blackie, feeling rather brave this morning, had finally deemed him okay and licked his face in affection. Gilbert woke up groggily and wondered where he was. He recognized the room though it seemed bigger. In the kitchen he could hear his bruder's voice but he couldn't make out what he was saying. He smiled at the sight of the dogs and pettet Blackie with the affection only a child could show. Blackie licked him again which caused Gilbert to giggle and tried to get away from the tongue.  
"That tickles!" he said just as Berlitz and Alster decided they wanted to join in the fun as well. Gilbert squeeled happily as he was showered in affection and tried his hardest to get away. The fun came to an end when his brother's voice caught his attention. He pushed himself away from the dogs and headed for the kitchen. He stopped at the mirror and looked at himself in surprise.  
"When did I get this small." he mumbled to himself. "Maybe Bruder knows."  
He walked carefully on with the dogs following suit behind. He looked up at his brother just as the taller said ' Ja he is home. ' Ludwig froze when he noticed the other up and quickly hung up on whoever he was talking to.  
"Bruder? " Gilbert asked. " When did I get this small?"  
"I don't know." Ludwig admitted still wishing this was just delusions from lack of sleep. "Do you recognize me?" he asked just to be safe.  
Gilbert nodded.  
"Do you have any idea what happened to you last night?"  
Gilbert shook his head.  
"All I remember is something hitting me in the head." he said with a pout and rubbed his head pittyfully.  
There was an awkward silence in the room only broken by the breathing of the dogs and the ticking of the clock. Then Gilbert yawned widely and rubbed his eyes in a tired manner.  
"It's still early morning so guess we should head to sleep. You know where your room is ja?"  
Gilbert nodded and Ludwig started to walk to his room. He stopped when he felt a tug at his shirt. Gilbert was standing there wide innocent eyes.  
"Will you tuck me in?"  
Ludwig stood frozen in place and stared at the other.  
"W-was? N-nein you are old enough to do that yourself."  
Gilbert's bottom lip trembled and suddenly his eyes welled with tears.  
"Fine. But straight to bed." Ludwig shot out quickly, feeling the panic well within him. He had no idea how to deal with a crying child. Gilbert instantly brightened up and he ran to hug the taller around the waist. Ludwig resisted the urge to forcefully push him off in favor of patting him awkwardly on the head. Finally he pried him off himself and headed to Gilbert's room in the basement. He startled when a cold hand grabbed onto his own and he tensely let it be. Once down in the room, Gilbert let go of his hand a leaped onto his bed with a squeel of joy, surprising Ludwig slightly. He hadn't heard his brother so delighted since he was a kid himself. It seemed as though even if Gilbert might remember things, he still held the spirit of a child. Still awkwardly Ludwig pushed the other gently to his pillow and lay the blanket on top of him. Gilbert snuggled into it with a content smile.  
"Gutten Nacht Bruder. " Ludwig said softening slightly just by seeing how content his brother was. The ever presant smirk that he had learned to get used to had been replaced by a smile of pure bliss, without any kind of cockiness. Just as Ludwig was about to stand up again Gilbert's arms reached around his neck and hugged.  
"Gutten Nacht!"  
Going as far as to press a quick kiss to his forehead before leaving the room and closing it behind him. The two ended up sleeping the rest of the day due to the hit at Gilbert's head and Ludwig working himself to exhaustion.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hiyah! 3 dec today! The snow is starting to melt outside again but that means I can take my bike to school :-) Anywho here's the next chapter!**

3 dec.

Ludwig woke up groggily to find Gilbert snuggled up to his side along with his three dogs. He waguely wanted to question all of it but more important matters where at hand. The grumbling of his stomach per example.  
"Time to wake up Gilbert." He mumbled groggily nudging at his side as he did so.  
Gilbert whined in protest and only rolled away so he was resting against Blackie instead. Blackie made a sound of content at the extra warmth and let his tail wrap around Gilbert as much as possible. Ludwig sighed in defeat. Perhaps he could let Gilbert rest for a while longer. The snow was falling just as it had yesterday and a small layer was covering the ground outside. After short contemplation he set to make a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs and wurst. As he worked he heard the sound of paws pounding against the stairs along with bare feet.  
"Gutten Morgen Gilbert." He said when he saw him sneak through the doorway.  
Gilbert didn't move from the doorway. He stood there shyly, one hand resting on Blackie's head and the other clutching the doorframe.  
"Why are you just standing there?" Ludwig asked without taking his eyes from the food.  
"What's that smell?" he asked shyly.  
"I made us breakfast." Ludwig replied.  
"Why? You never make me breakfast."  
It was true, Ludwig knew. All the morning when he had yelled at the elder when he whined about being hungry or something equally stupid. He suddenly felt a pang of guilt at the thought of it. Perhaps he had been a little harsh of him.  
"You're too young to cook your own breakfast Gilbert. Why don't you sit at the table until I'm done here."  
Gilbert surprisingly did as he was told and sat down quietly with Blackie resting at his feet. Berlitz and Alster went to rest nearby as well with and expectant look on their faces. Gilbert shy mood seemed to lighten when food was placed before him and he dug in instantly. It was expected that he was hungry since had probably hadn't eaten since dinner two days ago. The breakfast was quiet and more comfortable than most their breakfast and Ludwig was in such good mood that he even spoiled the dogs by giving them the rest of the food.  
"You don't have any decent clothes, so I think we need to get to a store while we're walking the dogs."  
When he didn't get an answer he found Gilbert far too engrossed in getting Blackie to play dead to pay attention to something trivial as a boring adult.

It was one thing maneuvering three excited dogs who hadn't gotten a decent walk in a day, but maneuvering them and keeping an eye on an equally excited Gilbert was even harder. They made it to the store with a minor heart-attack on Ludwig's side when Gilbert ran straight out in the street without warning, and three hyper dogs. The dogs were tied outside while Ludwig walked inside with Gilbert, this time with a firm grip on Gilbert's hand so he wouldn't run away. The shopping went fairly well and Ludwig figured that if he explained, his boss wouldn't mind if he bought it at his business. They were done within half an hour, thankfully Gilbert wasn't too hard to please. They were finally heading back to the gate when Gilbert suddenly stopped. Ludwig stopped and found Gilbert staring at something in a window. It didn't seem too extravagant but Ludwig understood why it had caught his brother's eyes. It was a white hoody but with black sleeves and in the center, the thing that caught Gilbert's interest, was the print of a black eagle. Gilbert didn't say anything really but Ludwig knew what he was thinking.

The impossibly wide grin on Gilbert's face as they walked down the streets on their way home was enough to make him feel that it was worth the extra money. The hoody was two sizes too big and the sleeves reached down beneath his hands but really how could he have resisted that look of longing. Maybe he was softening towards his brother.  
"Oh my what an adorable little boy." a woman said as they neared her and she bent down to his level. Gilbert simply shied away behind his brother's leg and hid his face shyly. Although he was surprised to find Gilbert shy towards a stranger he only petted his hair and smiled.  
"Sorry he's a little shy." he said to the woman who only smiled in endearment.  
"Don't worry about it, my children were exactly the same when they were that age. How old are you litte one?" she directed the last part to Gilbert.  
"Seven." he mumbled. "How old are you?"  
The woman looked shocked and Ludwig was about to apologize when she laughed.  
"Oh my what a darling! Well dearest, once a woman gets passed a certain age, we don't really have an age."  
Gilbert stared at her wide-eyed.  
"Like a nation?"  
The woman looked even more surprised now and Ludwig froze.  
"The dogs are getting impatient, we should leave."  
And with that he bid the confused lady farewell and pulled Gilbert with him home.

Once night rolled in and Ludwig had gotten the hyper boy in bed he slumped down on his desk to work on some paperwork that had been sent during the day. It was nothing important but he felt he needed to get some real work done before heading to bed. In the back of his mind he wondered how other nations before had been able to pose big brother and still take care of the politics. Now that Ludwig though about it most of the childhood he remembered was with Gilbert and since they were together since he woke up until he went to bed, that must have meant that he stayed up hours later to finish his actual work. He mad a mental note to thank his brother once he got back to normal. He was startled out of his thoughts by the phone ringing next to him. Tiredly he lifted the reciever to his ear.  
"Ja this is Weilschmidt residence."  
"Germany, is that you?"  
His boss.  
"Ja it's me. What is the matter?  
"I've been trying to reach you all day." his boss scolded.  
"Sorry there's been a situation with Bruder." he admitted.  
"Well I don't mean to sound insensitive to Prussia's problems but whatever it is you will have to find someone else to do it. Finland called and asked if we could move your meeting to tomorrow instead."  
"Ja I guess, but I think it would be better if I brought Gilbert with me." Ludwig said.  
"Finland says that you have to come to Helsinky instead, due to Sealand being ill. And with the current economy and all we can't afford to send both you and your brother there and back. It's bad enough that you apparently used the your job credit-card to buy children's clothes."  
"I swear it's not..."  
"Germany I don't know what kind of strange kinks you have but buy it out of your own pocket. Find someone who can look after Prussia and make sure to be in Helsinky for the meeting at three o'clock."  
Ludwig resisted a groan and let his head rest on the desk.  
"Fine. Let Finland no that I wish all health for Sealand and that I will see him tomorrow."  
With that he hung up only to stat dialing another number.  
"Ja who is this?" came a voice from the other side.  
"Roderich? I need a favor from you.


	4. Chapter 4

**New chapter**

4 dec: A great part of Ludwig was battling with the idea of somehow sneaking Gilbert into a bag and bring him to Finland but he knew that was stupid. Gilbert stood shyly behind him with a hand on Blackie's collar. He had asked his neighbour to look after the dogs while he was away but Blackie seemed to have decided that he was not going to leave Gilbert's side. The door opened and there stood the proud aristocrat known as Roderich. He nodded politely to the two end stepped aside to let them in. Before Roderich could comment on the dog, Ludwig explained.  
"He's a good dog." he assured.  
Roderich nodded.  
"And why is he here?"  
"Blackie says he's gonna protect me from meanies!" Gilbert suddenly said in glee while hugging the animal.  
Roderich didn't seem to have anything to say to that so Ludwig bent down carefully in front of him.  
"I'll see you in a few days Gil, and then we'll make sure to break whatever spell has been cast upon you and get you back to normal alright?"  
Gilbert nodded eagerly and threw his arms around the other's neck. For the first time, not feeling the least awkward, Ludwig softened and hugged him back tightly.  
"Behave yourself now." he whispered finally before he rose to his feet and left.

It was awkward to say the least as Gilbert sat on the edge of a couch and Roderich sat on another, drinking his coffee quietly. A cup of chocolate had been placed before Gilbert but he had yet to touch. With a slight cough Roderich said something in attempt to start a conversation.  
"Don't you like chocolate Gilbert?"  
His only response was a slight nod.  
"Then why don't you have some?" he suggested. "We don't want it to get cold."  
Gilbert shook his head but made no move to drink.  
"Perhaps you're just not up to it at the moment."  
No reply.  
Of all the things Roderich would have thought he would do in his life, trying and failing to have a conversation with Gilbert was not one of them.  
"How come you're so quiet today Gilbert? It's not like you."  
In a very quiet voice Gilbert replied.  
"Bruder wanted me to behave, and you only like me when I'm quiet."  
Well that was unexpected, Roderich though in surprise.  
Yes it was true that he found himself annoyed with the Prussian and said it aloud on more than one occasion but to say he only like him when he was quiet was a little over the top. They had afterall grown up together so he had some tolerance towards him.  
"Why don't we head to the park, Gilbert? We can give Blackie a walk and you can play on the playground."  
It was really just as much a way to change subject as it was a way to make the boy smile like he had did when he hugged Blackie. And there the smile was again, with just as much vigour and causing Roderich's heart to melt.

The park was a mix of peace and panic. Gilbert, dressed warmly enough for a three day blizzard, had started talking again and was smiling happily at everything around him. Women fawned over the child and asked if Roderich was his father wich he only sputtered indignantly to and pulled them farther. He had freaked out when slightly when Gilbert slipped and hit his head on the pavement but no harm seemed to have been made. Nevertheless he decided it was better if he walked calmly beside him for the rest of the walk. As soon as they reached the playground Gilbert gave him a questioning look to which Roderich only nooded. Gilbert whooped in joy and ran of to make some new friends. Blackie whined a little at the loss of his master but he settled on keeping a close eye on him with Roderich who had sat down on a bench next to a mother of one of the many children. Remembering how easily Feliciano could run off at that age, Roderich kept an eye at the boy while chatting politely with the mother.  
"So where is your child?" the woman asked.  
Roderich nodded towards Gilbert who had apparently found some friends to play with.  
"He's not my child though. He's my younger cousin who I'm babysitting for a few days."  
The woman smiled excitedly.  
"Oh then he is playing with my son! He's such an angel.""  
" I don't doubt." Roderich replied leaving Gilbert for a moment to politely looking at the mother.  
Suddenly there was a loud cry followed by children's screaming. Roderich turned his head again and found to his horror that Gilbert was no longer playing nicely, but wrestling furiously in the snow. A gasp escaped the woman beside her and together they hurried over to the scene. Before they could get there though a large man had grabbed Gilbert by his collar and lifted him above ground.  
"That's enough fighting, kid!"  
"Let me down! Let me down! Let me down!" Gilbert cried in panic and tried his best to get free by kicking and scratching.  
"Shut it, why were you fighting my son?" the man asked and shook him slightly.  
"He started it!" Gilbert yelled furiously.  
"I doubt that!" the mother Roderich had been talking to intervened. She had somehow pushed through the crowd to dot on the other boy.  
"Alright kid, apologize to our son now." the man said.  
Gilbert only stared defiantly at him before spitting him right in the man dried it of slowly.  
"You little..."  
"Put him down. Now!"  
Roderich had finally made it through the crowd with a growling Blackie at his feet. He watched the taller man steadily.  
"Stay out of this kid, this is between us."  
"I said." Roderich said slowly. "Put. Him. Down." there was now opption in the sentence and his eyes glew dangerously. That along with another growl from Blackie was enough to finally get Gilbert onto the ground. The moment he was, he hurried over to Roderich who instantly placed a protective arm around him.  
"Now whatever happened here, I'm sure we can solve this more maturely than threatening a mare child."  
"Your child attacked my angel!"  
Roderich looked down at the shivering and sniffling boy in his arms.  
"Is that true Gil?" he asked softly.  
"H-he s-said I was wierd." he mumbled with his head buried into Roderich's coat.  
"My child would never do something like that!"  
"Very well." Roderich said, not wanting to continue this argument. "I apologize for his actions and will have a nice talk to him once we get home."  
Not saying anything further he lead Gilbert away with Blackie at his side.  
"Such a demon shouldn't be allowed on the streets!"  
Roderich stopped. He remembered a time right before Old Man Fritz time when he had talked almost civilly with the albino. Roderich had seen what a horrible life he lived in the castle with constant insults thrown at him along with eggs and rocks. Amongst the insults were demon.  
"Stay with Blackie." he instructed swiftly before turning back to the other father.  
"I'm sorry what did you just say about my boy?"  
"I said, such a demon shouldn't be allowed on the streets."  
Roderich clenched his fists in annoyance.  
"So first you threaten him, then you accuse him and now you insult him? How dare you?"  
He could feel his anger rising by every second who the hell was this arschloch insulting a kid he barely knew. A member of the Weilschmidt family on top of that.  
"Kid, I don't know who you are but we've been going to this play-ground for five years and I won't let a mental case come here and threaten my children."  
Mental case. That did it for Roderich,  
Before anyone knew what happened, Roderich pulled back his clenched fist and rammed it with the other's chin.

"Are you mad at me?"  
Roderich looked up from his book to find a Gilbert in a pyama standing in the doorway with a pouty look and a dog at his feet.  
"For fighting that boy?" Roderich asked, closing his book at the same time.  
Gilbert nodded.  
" I should be," Roderich began. "But then again it's in your nature." he continued stroding over to lift Gilbert in his arms. He was very light, he noted, perhaps too light. "Also I got in a fight as well so that would make me a hyphocrite."  
Gilbert giggled a little and allowed the older to carry him back to the room closest to Roderich.  
"Will you tuck me in?"  
"Of course I will, but you have to promise you'll actually go to bed now."  
Gilbert nodded eagerly. He smiled contently as he was but down on the king-sized bed and had the cover pulled all the way to his chin.  
"Goodnight Gilbert."  
"Can Blackie sleep in the bed as well?"  
"He may sleep on the floor next to the bed but that is it."  
Gilbert pouted a little but he accepted.  
"Goodnight Roddie!" he said sleepily as he closed his eyes.  
Roderich only chuckled and turned of the light. Hopefully tomorrow wouldn't be just as exhausting.


	5. Chapter 5

5 dec:

Roderich knew he should have reacted more strongly to finding Gilbert in his bed instead of his own but then he noticed how happy Gilbert looked in his sleep and let it slide. Blackie lay on the floor as close to Gilbert as humanly possible but when Roderich's bare feet touched the floor he woke up in an instant. He looked at the human curiously but when he deemed he was no threat to his master he rested his head on his paws again. It was still early morning and he felt it was far too early for breakfast on his day off so he headed down to the parley where his grand piano stood proudly. With all the work piling up lately it had been a while since he had the opportunity to play. He sat down carefully on the stool and played what came to mind. It started of sad with a flash of bitterness darkening by every tune. Then the speed increased and the chords switched to more bright once until he was playing a song of nothing but joy and happiness. Then the song slowed down again and held a hint of desperation beneath the surface until it faded away into nothingness. He was so absorbed in his playing that he didn't even notice Gilbert looking at him until Blackie barked out. He swirled around to meet Gilbert's curious gaze.  
"Good morning Gilbert, did you sleep well?"  
Gilbert nodded silently without letting his gaze wander.  
"Is something wrong?" Roderich asked with a slight frown. Yet again Gilbert seemed to have gone into quiet mode. Gilbert shook his head.  
"Do you want some breakfast perhaps? I can make Palatschinken."  
Gilbert nodded silently and followed as Roderich headed out in the kitchen to prepare the dish. As he worked he pondered on how to lighten Gilbert's mood again. The park would be a horrible idea and although he guessed Blackie would need a walk eventually the thought of having him outside wasn't all too appealing. When the dish finally was done, he still hadn't come up with something but he decided that perhaps some food could inspire him. He turned to set a plate in front Gilbert, only to find him not there.

He found Gilbert on his piano-stool staring at the instrument. His long fingers rested on the keys but he made no move in touching them  
"What are you up to?" Roderich asked curiously frowning when he saw the pout lingering on Gilbert's lips.  
"How you do it?" he asked silently.  
"Do what?" Came Roderich's confused reply.  
"Make it sound so pretty."  
Did Gilbert just compliment his music?  
Roderich cautiously moved over to the piano and sat himself next to Gilbert.  
"It's a matter of training Gilbert. I have trained for many years."  
"I want to make pretty music as well." he sulked. "But I'm no good at music."  
Roderich once again thought back to the 18th century. He was pretty sure he had a good instrument for him somewhere.  
"Stay here." he said with a semi-smile before walking as fast as was dignant to another part of the house. He found what he was looking for in a dusty box in the closet a retrieved it to the parley. He had tried to play the instrument but found it impossible for unknown reasons. He opened the box when he reached back to Gilbert who was currently playing with Blackie and showed its content. It was a simple flute.  
"Go ahead and try." he urged the boy.  
Gilbert let his finger wander across the instrument before they retracted.  
"I don't know how to play it." he said with a flash of rejection in his eyes.  
"I know you can." was Roderich's reply. "It's within you."  
Gilbert contemplated for a long while before picking the flute in his hands. After hesitating a few seconds he brought it to his lips and started playing. It was simple yet beautiful and Blackie wagged his tail in approval. Roderich had never heard the melody before so he guessed it was something that he composed on the spot. He soon stopped and lowered the flute with a down-cast expression.  
"That was amazing." Roderich said honestly and Blackie wagged his tail as though trying to say the same thing. Gilbert's face instantly brightened up and he look up expaectantly.  
"Really? Do you think so?"  
Roderich reached out and ruffled his hair affectionately.  
"It runs within our family. Would you like some Palatschiken now?"  
Gilbert smiled even wider and wrapped his arms around the elder. Roderich only chuckled and carried him to the diningroom.

"Did you like it?" Roderich asked though it seemed like he did if the liking his plate clean was anything to go by. Gilbert nodded eagerly.  
"I really liked it." he said, then he got a thoughtful expression.  
"What's on your mind?" Roderich asked, praying it was something normal.  
"Can I give the rest of my breakfast to Blackie? I think he'd really like it."  
"No." Roderich said without even blinking. " Palatschiken is for humans. Ludwig left us dogfood for Blackie."  
Gilbert pouted.  
"But Blackie doesn't like dogfood."  
"Nonetheless, that's what he will..." he faltered when Gilbert's lip started to tremble. "Make sure there's no mess on the floor." he relented at the same time wondering when he had grown so soft. Maybe it was the age. As he watched Gilbert making Blackie do tricks on the floor, the phone suddenly rang out.  
"Hello?" he asked shortly.  
"Roderich Got sei dank I could reach you."  
Roderich blinked in surprise.  
"Ludwig what a surprise."  
"I just called to hear how Gilbert is doing has he been behaving alright?"  
Roderich chuckled.  
"He might actually have been the one of us behaving the 's teaching Blackie some new tricks as we speak."  
"Gut to know he's enjoying himself." there was a hint of endearment in Ludwig's voice which Roderich only could take as that Ludwig had grown fond of the child like he had. "To be honest I have run into a slight complication." Ludwig admitted tiredly. "It seems my flight back has been cancelled and I won't be able to fly back until the 14th."  
"14th!?" Roderich yelled out causing Gilbert to look at him curiously. "Ludwig I've been called over to the prison near Wien tomorrow and I assure it is not a place to bring a small child." he said more quietly.  
"Why are you going to a prisson? And I can't really do much about it. Tino says that I can either wait at his place or borrow a car and get there at least a few days sooner."  
"My bussiness are mine. I'll see if I can find someone else to take care of him while I'm away."  
"Alright thank you Roderich."  
Roderich sighed and the two said their goodbyes. It was still fairly early so he deemed that he could postpone calling someone for a little while longer.  
"Gilbert, would you like me to teach you how to play the piano."

The two nations were far too focused on the piano-music to notice someone opening the front door. Blackie however lifted his head from the floor where he had been lying, constantly close to Gilbert. Carefully he left the room and padded out in the hall. Elizaveta was to say the least surprised to find a dog sneaking towards her when she entered Roderich's house. She was even more surprised when she recognized it as one of Ludwig and Gilbert's dogs. She knealt down when he neared and scratched lovingly behind his ears.  
"Hey Blackie, what are you doing here? Is Luddie here with you?"  
Blackie only licked her in response and she giggled.  
"I forget that you don't speak human. Can you show me where everyone are?"  
Blackie barked and wagged his tail before padding down the hall. Soon she could hear the sound of a piano but it sounded far slower and simpler to be the work of Roderich. She found a very unexpected sight at the parley. There was Roderich with a fond smile on his face teaching an albino child with a black and white hoody how to play the piano. They both looked extremely happy and the child giggled in joy when he succeeded in something.  
"Well done Gilbert. You're getting the hold of it." Roderich praised and pulled the child into a one-armed hug.  
Elizaveta blinked in surprise.  
Gilbert?  
"What's going on here?" she asked and both twirled around.  
The boy was a replica of the Gilbert she had known as a child. Roderich coughed awkwardly.

Elizaveta glanced over at the child who had finally fallen asleep in the car somewhere around ten. After everything had been explained and cleared out, Elizaveta had explained that she could look after him until Ludwig was back. Blackie was resting calmly in the trunk and had been surprisingly calm the entire ride. Without taking her eyes of the road she petted Gilbert's hair softly and he subconsiously leaned into the warmth. He was adorable to say the least and Elizaveta didn't doubt the following days would be interesting.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry this chapter suxs**

****Dec 6

Gilbert woke up with Blackie curled around him in a new bed. It was nicely painted in green but with taints of white and red that reminded him vaguely of Elizaveta's dresses. For a moment he wondered what had woken him up because he did not even feel close to rested, but then there was a second knock on the door.  
"Gilbert are you awake?" Came Elizaveta's voice through the door.  
"Yeah." Gilbert mumbled back but instead of getting up and look at the person he just buried his face in Blackie's fur. The dog made a sound of content waged his tail lazily.  
"Good morning cutie. Did you sleep well."  
"What time is it?" he mumbled.  
"A little passed ten." Elizaveta answered softly from the doorway, inwardly squeeling at how cute Gilbert looked with his face in Blackie's fur. "Are you hungry?"  
Gilbert only mumbled somthing in reply but she took it as a yes.  
"Then you better get out of bed so I can cook you some."  
Gilbert complied groggily and left the warmth provided from Blackie who whined at the change in position. As Eliza waited Gilbert petted the dog and pulled on his over-sized hoody from yesterday.  
So cute!  
"Come on cutie."

As Gilbert was walking beside her and talking about the dreams he'd dreamt, she thought of what she could cook for the boy that he might enjoy. If she knew Roderich as well as she thought she did, he probably got plenty of sugar yesterday, something that clearly Elizaveta wanted to avoid. It was hard enough taking care of a kid as it was, but one given sugar was a suicidal mission. Finally she decided to make some Hungarian omelets for him. She pulled out mushrooms, eggs, butter, onion and spices and started prepping it all for a nice omelet. She looked back and giggled when she saw Gilbert playing with Blackie on the floor. She hummed softly while working letting it blend in with Gilbert's laughter. Once she was done with the preparing she pulled out a frying-pan to get it all finished. But a sudden gasp from Gilbert caused her to freeze in her movement. She turned around slowly only to find Gilbert hugging Blackie tightly with his eyes welling over with tears.  
"Gilbert what's wrong?" she asked in shock.  
"Please don't hit me." he whispered fearfully, cowering on the floor. "I promise I'll stop being stupid and annoying."  
Elizaveta blinked. Did the kid seriously think she was going to hit him with the fryingpan, who would do such a thing. Oh. She couldn't really count the times she had slammed a fryingpan into Gilbert's head when he was crashing one of the meetings or pissing her off. And now it came to her just what kind of affect it had on her frenemy.  
"Gilbert? Do you really think I will hit you with this?" she motioned towards the frying-pan but only recieving a whimper from Gilbert. She put the pan aside and knealt down in front in front of Gilbert and Blackie.  
"I'm sorry." she said softly keeping a distance between herself and Gilbert so he wouldn't get even more scared. "I promise I won't hurt you and I didn't mean to scare you like that. "  
"But you allways do." Gilbert whispered fearfully.  
It was true, Elizaveta knew but it still stung slightly.  
"Is there anyway I can convince you that I am absolutely harmless?" she asked exasperated wishing nothing more than for Gilbert to start trusting her again. For a long while he didn't say anything but finally he just petted Blackie and whispered a silent.  
"C-c-can I have a kiss?"  
Blackie raised his head curiously and Elizaveta blinked.  
"A kiss?"  
Gilbert blushed slightly and kept his eyes down.  
"Vati always kissed me on the forehead when he wanted to say sorry." he mumbled, tugging a little at his hoody. It took a lot of restraints from Elizaveta's part not to hug the living daylights out of the boy right there and then but she managed somehow and kept to simply smiling and getting up. Then she lifted Gilbert into her arm and pressed a wet kiss to each of the two cheeks, slightly salty from tears, and one to his forehead.  
"I'm sorry for scaring you, you adorable, adorable thing." she said sweetly and hugged him with the tenderness of a mother. "Am I forgiven?"  
"I'm hungry." Gilbert stated.  
It wasn't an answer to Elizaveta's question, but it wasn't a blatant rejection either. She sighed happily in relief an yet again set to making the breakfast.

"So what do you want to do today?" Elizaveta asked later when the dishes were washed and dried and Gilbert's face had been cleaned. Gilbert shrugged.  
"Do you want to go out and play in the park perhaps?"  
Gilbert shook his head with a little pout.  
"Roddie took me to the park but the other kid's were mean to me."  
"So that's not an option." Elizaveta concluded to herself figuring he wasn't really fond of the park anymore.  
"Do you want to go out and play in the garden then?"  
Gilbert shook his head.  
"It's so cold outside." he muttered.  
After thinking a short while, Elizaveta snapped her fingers.  
"I think there's a nice Christmas-movie on TV today! Do you want to watch that with me?"  
Gilbert thought about it for a moment before nodding eagerly. Soon they were snuggled in the sofa with Blackie resting his head in Gilbert's lap. It was a good movie to watch, Elizaveta concluded. It was the usual classic about old Scroodge and his greediness. When the third ghost entered he huddled a little closer to the hungarian but in all he seemed to enjoy the movie. They ended up spending most of the day in that couch and Gilbert took in every second of it. Somewhere around where Rudolf was leading Santa through the mist, Elizaveta got a phonecall and left the room. It turned out to be Lilly and they ended up talking for almost half an hour before she had to leave, but she promised she would come over the following day and see the adorable albino. They said their goodbye's and Elizaveta headed back for the living-room. It had already darkened outside the window but the snow was falling with twice as much vigor as it had before. It wouldn't surprise her if she would have to stay inside tomorrow as well unless she was in some strange mood of shoveling the yard. If Gilbert really wanted to get out, then she supposed they could force the backdoor open so he could play in the garden. When she looked to the couch she found that Gilbert had taken to lie down on the couch instead of sitting and had his head rested next on a pillow with Blackie resting securely at his side. Both were fast asleep and it didn't look like they were about to wake up anytime soon. Resisting the urge to squeel she picked a blanket from a drawer and draped it over both Gilbert and Blackie. With the greatest care she pulled out her camera and snapped a few shots.  
This will be a perfect Christmas-gift.


	7. Chapter 7

Dec 7.  
Like Elizaveta had predicted the frontyard was covered in crystals, giving all a sense of wonderland. Gilbert seemed to be in a happy mood and all through breakfast he spoke about whatever came to mind. This had a soothing affect on the female nation and as the morning passed by in happy manner. Elizaveta managed to bath both Gilbert and Blackie and although her bathroom looked like a warzone she concidered it a general victory to her. The two were now dried up and clean, although Blackie seemed rather displeased with the entire ordeal. Suddenly there was a ring at the door and Elizaveta, figuring it was Lilly, hurried over to open. Outside were three boys at the ages between 7 and 10 looking up at her eagerly. She vaguely recognized them as the neighboring children.  
"Helo Miss Hedevary." the eldest boy said with a polite smile.  
"Helo children." she replied warily. "How can I help you young boys today?"  
The eldest kept talking.  
"We saw a boy in your window yesterday and we wondered if he wanted to play with us!"  
Elizaveta blinked in surprise.  
"I - I w-will have to ask him I guess." she said still a little warily. "Hold on a sec."  
She smiled sweetly at them and turned to Gilbert who had been looking curiously at her from the doorway with Blackie. Elizaveta figured he had heard.  
"Well do you?"  
Gilbert nodded shyly.  
"Then let's get you ready!" Elizaveta said with a bright smile.

"Hi I'm Adrian!" the first boy said when Gilbert eventually ventured out of the house.  
"I'm Demeter." the second boy said.  
"And I'm Jakab." the last said.  
"I'm Gilbert." Gilbert said shyly.  
"Cool! Where are you from? How do you know miss Hedevary?" Adrian asked being the eldest and most curious one.  
"I usually live with my brother in Germany but he got busy. Elizaveta is his friend."  
"Wow you really know good Hungarian!" Demeter complimented.  
Jakab who was closest in age with Gilbert whined in irritation.  
"Whatever! Can't we just play?"  
Gilbert was more than eager to agree with that, not really happy about having to lie about his life.  
Adrian rolled his eyes.  
"Fine, snowball fight. I'm with Demeter on our yard and you'll be on this one!"  
Before either Jakab or Gilbert could argue the two older boys had run of to the other side of the fence and started to prepare a fort. Jakab muttered something but set to build one of his own.  
"It's unfair!" he complained as he worked not even caring that Gilbert was helping. "It's always me against them!"  
Gilbert smiled a little more confidential.  
"Not today it isn't! I'm in your team today! And I'm awesome."  
Jakab rolled his eyes.  
"Yeah right."  
Gilbert huffed.  
"It's true! I've never lost a battle in my life!" That was more or less true right?  
Jakab seemed to brighten a little.  
"Really? You think you can take down my mean brothers?"  
Gilbert was now fullout working on the protective wall between them and the enemy.  
"You bet! Plus," he added with a smirk. "We have a secret weapon."

The battle was fierce but not once was Gilbert hit by the snowballs from the enemy. He dodged, crawled jumped and swirled in order to avoid every projectile while saving Jakab from getting hit as well and throwing snowballs back at the other two. Adrian and Demeter seemed generally annoyed by this and put more force into every snowball thrown which only got them less accurate.  
"We're winning this!" Jakab yelled only to have his wide smile falter seconds later.  
Gilbert followed his gaze and saw another two boys heading their way and crouching next to Adrian and Demeter.  
"It seems like they've got some re-infocement." Gilbert muttered.  
He threw himself to the ground seconds later with Jakab with him just as a rain of snowball came their way.  
"What do we do now!?" Jakab cried in panic.  
"We wait." Gilbert muttered back.  
"Wait for what?"  
Suddenly there was a loud bark and Blackie came running. Gilbert grinned madly.  
"That!"

Elizaveta had taken Blackie for a walk while Gilbert played. Her neighbor had assured that she could keep an eye on him until she got back. Although the snow lay thick the walk went fairly well apart from the time when they stumbled upon another dog. On their way back, Elizaveta's phone suddenly went off. The reciever-ID read in bold letters. Ludwig.  
"Helo? Luddie is that you?"  
"Ja that is me." a tired voice answered. " Roderich told me you were looking after Gilbert for me, how is he doing?"  
Elizaveta smiled adoringly.  
"He's absolutely adorable!" she said. "I'll send you pictures later! And he's been really well behaved as well. "  
"That's good to hear." Ludwig replied. "Listen Elizaveta," Ludwig began hesitantly. "Do you think you can have him there for another week? I'm stuck in a blizzard in Stockholm right now and won't be getting anywhere."  
Elizaveta hummed in thought.  
"Although I could do that Ludwig. I think it's better not to."  
She giggled at the tired groan that came form Ludwig on the other side.  
"Why not?"  
"Well," Elizaveta began hesitantly. "Did it ever occur to you why Gilbert was suddenly turned back to a seven year old?"  
There was a stunned silence on the other side so Elizaveta continued.  
"You were not yet born at the time but at the age of seven, Gilbert was the representation of the teutonic knights."  
"So?"  
"Well I think that was, apart from his time with Frederich II, the happiest time of his life. He had yet to face many hardships in life, as he was young and knew not the bitterness that come with being a big nation. Perhaps whoever did this to him, wanted to give him an opportunity to be unconditionally happy again."  
Yet again there was no answer. Had she taken his entire abilty to speak away?  
"Perhaps we should let him be with other people as well, so that we are sure his childhood is as good as possible. Also I doubt I'm the only one who has conflicts to solve with Gilbert."  
"Conflicts?" Ludwig seemed to finally have found his voice again. Elizaveta sighed in annoyance.  
"I thought you were supposed to be clever. Anyway Lilly is coming over tonight and if all works well, Gilbert will be somewhere in Switzerland tomorrow. The two may not be too close, but they are family."  
"I'm not sure I understand what you're saying," Ludwig admitted. "But right now I just need to know that Gilbert is safe somewhere."  
Elizaveta smiled.  
"You're a good brother. I gotta go now but call Vash tomorrow. Bye!" Before Ludwig could protest Elizaveta hung up. The reason was the scene where we left Gilbert. In surprise at the chaos on her yard she accidentally let go of Blackie's leash who instantly leapt to his master's aid. The distraction of the dog was all Gilbert needed to shoot up from his hiding place and fire of the last four snowballs. Each one hit with impressive perfection and all four boys stumbled to the ground. Gilbert whooped in victory.  
"I'm awesome!"  
The other four boys got up and crossed the fence.  
"Nicely played." Adrian said and stretched out his hand.  
Gilbert grinned.  
"You too, but it was Jakab who did most of the things, I just worked on the side a little."  
Adrian raised an eyebrow.  
"Really?"  
Gilbert grinned even wider.  
"Yup, you have the coolest brother ever!"  
Elizaveta was more or less melting. It seemed as though Gilbert was trying his very best to help his new friend out and it was absolutely adorable. Adrian smiled.  
"Come on Jakab let's get home." he threw his arm around his brother's shoulder and after all saying goodbye to Gilbert they headed inside. Gilbert smiled when he finally noticed Elizaveta and ran over to hug her.  
"I had the best snowballfight ever!"  
Elizaveta smiled as well and hugged back.  
"I should have known you'd be good at them." she said with a laugh.  
They both looked up when they heard crunching footsteps stopping at their yard. Lilly was looking at them with a stunned expression.  
"What on earth happened to your yard?"


	8. Chapter 8

**So it's 23.56 at my place so I'm really in the last second but enjoy!**

Dec 8: Vash stared incredulously at his sister. Then he let his gaze wander to the albino boy and his dog before straying back to Lilly yet again. He continued this procedure for a good ten minutes before he finally found his voice.  
"Sister, what is that?" he asked silently as though worried that too loud noises would alert the attention of the child. Lilly smiled sweetly.  
" Big Brother you recognize cousin Gilbert right? He's going to stay with us for a couple of days until other matters appear."  
"H-how can that be Gilbert?" Vash asked tensely.  
Lilly only giggled and pulled Gilbert into a hug.  
"I'm honestly not sure but it is him and he absolutely adorable, don't you think brother?"  
Lilly was giving him that hopeful smile that Vash couldn't really refuse even if he wanted to.  
"It's cold." he finally said with a sigh. "You should get him inside so he doesn't get sick."  
Understanding her brother's defeat she squeeled in delight and hugged her brother. Then she grabbed onto Gilbert's hand with a warm smile.  
"Come on Gil! You'll have a lovely time!"

"Miss Lilly?" Gilber asked later that day as they were taking a walk around the area with Blackie.  
"What's the matter Gil?" Lilly asked squeezing his hand a little.  
Gilbert was wearing a thoughtful expression one that Lilly never had seen the adult Gilbert with.  
"Is Vash mad that I'm here?"  
Lilly hugged him.  
"Of course not he just isn't used to children."  
"He never like me as an adult." Gilbert muttered into Lilly's coat as the later petted his hair. They started walking again.  
"Perhaps it seems like big brother doesn't like you," she said thoughtfully. "But deep inside I know he does. We're a family Gil, and although we have our arguments we will always love you."  
Gilbert tilted his head.  
"How can you know?"  
Suddenly Lilly smiled mischievously enough to battle one of Gilbert's smiles.  
"I'll prove it to you."

PANG  
Every shot Vash fired with his gun hit bullseyes and echoed throughout the empty field. He prided himself in this as it was something consistent that would never change. It didn't matter what hardships was placed before him. His aim was flawless like always. It was soothing to know as his mind was in a mess. He couldn't tell why he had reacted so strongly to Gilbert being turned into a child, but it did. Suddenly it was like when he had first taken Lilly under his wings. After Lilly had gotten better and their life entered some routines, hundreds of worries had clouded the Swiss' mind. Hundreds of things that could cause harm to his precious sister. It had calmed down a bit in later years as there were no wars going on and the nations were acting somewhat civil towards ladies in the meetings, but it was still there. Now with a small version of Gilbert, a version he had only vague memories of, these thoughts had reoccurred to him. Lilly had been a young teenager when he took her in so the house had been fairly safe place but Gilbert was younger and many things in the house and the surrounding grounds could be dangerous for such a young boy. His mind played through several dangers, such as hurting himself on the kitchen-knives, falling down the stairs, running onto the ice at the lake and fall in and so on. At the moment he was replaying a scene in his mind of what would happen if Gilbert ran into his shooting-field. He shook his head. Lilly was with him. She would know better than to let Gilbert run somewhere dangerous and he still had his dog. With a resolute nodd he raised the gun again and took aim.  
BANG  
Bullseye.  
He looked up suddenly when the sound of a dog rang through the area and scanned the area with expertize. At first he just sighed in annoyance when he realized it was only Lilly and Blackie causing the noise, but then he froze. Far too high up in the tree was a small albino, swinging his legs dangerously so that he almost tipped over a few times. With panic welling up inside Vash dropped the gun to the ground and sprinted as fast as he could to the others.  
"Gilbert Weilschmidt get down from there!" he yelled in a far too highpitched voice for it to be good for his pride.  
Gilbert only giggled and tossed a bit of snow.  
"It's alright Vash, I used to climb trees all the time!"  
"I don't care." Vash said in a slightly more manly voice." It's dangerous and you could hurt yourself."  
Gilbert pouted.  
"But it's much funnier up here. I can see miles."  
Yet again Gilbert leaned out and for a moment it seemed like he was going to fall but in the last moment he leaned back again.  
"You can see miles from the house as well." Lilly tried in a futile attempt to lure the boy down.  
Gilbert scoffed.  
"Yeah but that's inside. I want to be free!" he said the last part as he stretched back on the branch and leaned out dangerously.  
"Alright, that does it." Vash muttered and pulled of his jacket." I'm going up to fetch him."  
He handed the jacket to Lilly before starting the climb. It was hard but the military boots gave him a somewhat decent grip on the trunk and the branches were placed out evenly. To his chagrin, Gilbert only stuck out his tongue and climbed higher. Vash resisted the urge to curse and climbed on. As they neared the top, Vash finally got at the same height as Gilbert. With little warning he pulled the boy close to his chest with his free arm and kept him in a steady grip before making the journey down. Gilbert whined and protested all the way down while Vash was struggling to get them both down safely. Once down he allowed Lilly to pull Gilbert into a hug while he pulled on his coat and collected his temper. There was no use in yelling at a child. Once collected enough he pulled Gilbert out of the hug and knealt before him with a heavy hand on each shoulder. Gilbert had his eyes downcast.  
"Gilbert look at me." Vash said sternly, but trying not to sound too harsh. Gilbert did as told. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, do you hear me?" Gilbert nodded. "That was really dangerous. What if you had fallen?"  
Gilbert pouted greatly and let his eyes fall to the ground.  
"I'm sorry." he whispered.  
Vash got up with a heavy sigh and pulled the boy in a tight hug.  
"I don't I think I could bare the thought of having you hurt." he muttered, surprising himself as well by admitting it. Finally he let the boy go.  
"Your confided to inside for the rest of the day young man, run along."  
With that he turned his back to them and headed back to his gun.

"I told you he cared." Lilly said later that evening when she was tucking Gilbert in.  
Gilbert giggled.  
"I didn't think he'd climb up after me." he admitted.  
"Of course he did. He would probably have cut down the entire tree if he thought it was useful. But," she said as an afterthought. "It was really dangerous of you to keep climbing." she scolded softly. "I thought I told you to stay at the same branch where it wouldn't be the worst disaster if you fell."  
Gilbert grimmased.  
"But Vash looked so scary when he was coming so I thought that I might be better of postponing our meeting."  
Now it was Lilly's time to giggle and she kissed Gilbert's forehead softly.  
"Goodnight you little rascal."  
"Goodnight miss Lilly."

**Unless you figured it out Lilly and Gilbert planned all of it.**


	9. Chapter 9

Dec 9:

"What do you mean your car was stolen?"  
Both Lilly and Gilbert looked up in surprise form their puzzle at the sudden yell from Vash.  
"Yes I understand that but how did that happen? Did you just leave the doors open with a sign saying *I'm in a rush, please take my car so I'm stuck in some place called Eskilstuna.*?  
Gilbert and Lilly snickered.  
"Then how the hell..." Vash paused a little when he remembered Gilbert being in the room. "...hellvetian mafia in Eskilstuna managed to steal your car I suppose I will never know."  
Gilbert and Lilly who were both in reality somewhat familiar with the cursings had to fight hard not to laugh out loud and disturb the already agravated man.  
"Fine but I'm still sticking to Elizaveta's plan. Why? Because she's right! Also this place is far too dangerous for a young boy. No he didn't get in any kind of danger! Why would I shoot him?! I'm glad you trust me that much. " The last part was said very sarcasticly. " NO! I did not lock him up in his freezing room! What do you think of me! Yes Blackie is here to protect him." the conversation kept on in a similar manner of a couple of more minutes before Vash sighed in annoyance. "I'm hanging up on you now good luck with the car."  
Before the person on the other line could protest Vash put the reciever back in place. He didn't explain the conversation to either Lilly or Gilbert but chose to just go outside instead. As soon as the door had been slammed shut the two remaining nations looked at each other and broke into a fit of giggles. Blackie barked happily by the noise and skipped up and down in the room solely to show that whatever pleased his master, was pleasing him as well.  
" A day with only puzzles would be extremely boring for a young man, I'm guessing. Is there anything you want to do today? " Lilly asked when they had finally calmed down a little bit.  
Gilbert chewed on his lips in thought for a while before breaking into a wide grin.  
"Let's play hide and seek!"

And so they did although Lilly insisted that they played inside just in case. Lilly was the first to count while Gilbert and Blackie sped of down the halls. The house was perfect for hide and seek. There were a multiples of halls filled with various items to hide behind. The quiestion was simple. Where to hide first? He finally settled upon letting Blackie decide. Not much later he found himself crouching behind a drawer of sorts in an empty hall. He could no longer hear Lilly counting. It was a little scary being alone in a hall filled with scary things. He secretely prayed there were no monsters in the house.  
"You'll protect me if something scary comes up right? " he whispered to Blackie and hugged him tigthly. Blackie simply licked his face in confirmation.  
Blackie would indeed protect Gilbert from anything. These days had been tiring to him. Finding his master as a child perhaps had not seen like a big deal to a dog but his master looked much more fragile now and it worried him greatly. The hour he had spent waiting while his masters were gone shoping could have been days as he worried for his master. Then there was the matter with Mr Austria in the park. By then Blackie had sworn to his 'brothers' to protect Gilbert no matter what yet he had failed. Gilbert had been in danger and threatened by that large angry man and he had been powerless. It had scared him as well. He was happy to hear his master playing the shiny instrument again as he had almost completely stopped a few years back and it seemed to joy his master as well. Then Elizaveta had turned up and made things complicated. For some reason she had taken Gilbert from the fairly safe home to her own house. A decided to stay quiet and rest that night in the car so he had the energy to fend of any danger once they reached the new place. Even in his sleep he made sure he was as close as humanly possibly to the boy. The first danger they encountered came during breakfast when something Elizaveta did scared Gilbert. He didn't understand exactly what it was but it made his master cling to him like there were no tomorrow. Whatever it had been had then somehow cleared out and Blackie found himself relaxing for the rest of the have the woman forcing him to bath, was one thing, but to have the same annoying Hungarian woman pull you away for a walk while Gilbert was talking to stranger was just plain rude. All throughout the walk his only goal had been to get back to the house. When he finally succeeded in this, he found stranger boys throwing snow at his master. Gilbert had explained to him previously that this was nothing dangerous but then it had been his two friends. These were strangers and were throwing with much more vigor than they would do. Also these boys weren't smiling. WIth a loud bark he had did the first thing that came to mind, attack . And now he was in this new place, one hundred percent confused. Gilbert had climbed up in a tree with help from the woman and the man had climbed up to get him. Now they were hiding for whatever reason in a dark hall and not doing anything. And for some reason his master was scared. All of this was really too much to handle for a single dog.

Gilbert smiled at the dog and kept waiting. Soon footsteps could be heard in the hall along with a female's sing-song voice.  
"Oh Gilbert? Where are you? " the voice sing-songed and Gilbert giggled. Before the dog could really react, he bolted further down the hall. Blackie followed as well as possible. Soon they found themselves in a new room filled with old weapons and various cluttered items. He guessed this was a storage room. He scanned the room curiously . There were clothes from various aspects of times, included a pink pyjama wrapped in a silk cloth. Arrows, guns, swords and daggers hung on the wall as a reminder of old and more dangerous times. In the corner stood an iron bucket that looked like it had been hit repeatedly with a fist.  
"Are you surprised I have one of these?"  
Gilbert swirled around to find Vash standing against the doorfram with his arms crossed.  
"I didn't know what was in here." Gilbert muttered a little appologetic. Vash gave him a semi-smile.  
"I hardly do myself." he admitted . "Most things are just I can't bare to throw away even if I should." He went over and picked up the pyjama.  
"I still use this frequently." he said with a hint of pink tainting his cheeks. "But it's too cold to wear in the winter so I put it here in the meantime. "  
Gilbert giggled a little and Vash send him an only slightly serious glare.  
"Kid or not you are exactly the same guy I know. "  
"Is that good or bad?" Gilbert asked earning him a ruffle his hair.  
"Don't ever change."

They found Lilly in the kitchen with another nation that Gilbert recognized well. Both were seemingly looking for him.  
"Goodday Belgium." Vash said stiffly and the two turned around. Bella instantly started to swoon over Gilbert.  
"Oh my god he's adorable!" she said while crouching in front of his and pinching his cheek in a way very similar to an old lady. Gilbert swatted the hand away. Bella only giggled and kept talking.  
"When Liz told me Gilbert was turned into a kid I did not believe him for a second but here he is."  
Gilbert whined a little in annoyance as Bella kept pinching for a long while later. Finally she stopped and turned to Lilly.  
"So why did you call me over here?"  
"Well..." Lilly began, " Liz said that he should be on various places and this place clearly isn't safe for him so I was wondering if you had any suggestions."  
Gilbert was a little annoyed that they were talking about him as though he wasn't there but he was also curious of what was to come. Bella thought about for a moment before lightning up.  
"I know just the place!"

Antonio rubbed his eyes tiredly and stared at the guests at his doorstep. This didn't even make sense.  
"Gilbert?"


	10. Chapter 10

**I should really stop posting this at the finall minute. Anywho sorry but this chapter is a little shorter and I think there was something else I was going to say but I totally forgot, enjoy!**

10 dec.  
Antonio's surprise didn't wear of until the following morning when he got out of bed. He had previously assumed he had gotten drunk without noticing it and made up a chlld-version of Gilbert in his mind. Yet when he woke up there was a dog staring at him in the living-room and a boy sleeping on his couch. It was indeed still Gilbert and he had no pounding in his head so he was still sober. Blackie stared at him tentatively as he creapt closer but for once he knew it was something he could trust. Antonio was not so sure. Truth be told he was more of a cat person and he didn't really like dogs.  
"Hola doggie." Antonio whispered carefully and stretched out a hand. "Peace".  
Blackie barked happily and leapt to greet his master's friend. Antonio shrieked, in a very manly way might I add, as he tumbled back with a heavy dog on top of him and licking his face clean. The comotion caused Gilbert to wake up and he sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.  
"Blackie? What are you doing?"  
At the sound of his master's voice Blackie stepped of and Gilbert's face lightened when he saw who the other was.  
"Toni!" he yelled out in joy and leaped of the couch to hug the other.  
Antonio coughed when Gilbert landed on his abdomen but hugged back nontheless.  
"Amigo is that really you?" he asked.  
Gilbert nodded into the other's shirt.  
"How did this happen?"  
Gilbert shrugged.  
"Someone knocked me down after I left the bar and then I woke up like this."  
Now Antonio felt really guilty about not trying harder to find his friend. He hugged a little tighter.  
"I'm sorry amigo." he murmured silently. "We should have searched harder."  
Gilbert hugged him back but said nothing. Suddenly, Antonio shot up with Gilbert still sitting on his chest.  
"You don't believe in miracles." he said matter of factly. He was staring straight into scarlet eyes.  
"Nope." Gilbert replied back flatly.  
"Because as a nation we often face hardships." Antonio continued.  
"Yup."  
"And somethimes we grow attatched to our civilians."  
"Yes." Gilbert said a little bit saddened.  
"And it hurts to lose them."  
"Y-yes."  
"But you don't realize that they're not gone."  
"What?"  
Antonio didn't reply to that one. He lifted Gilbert of his chest and carried him to the hallway hoping Blackie would follow without any orders. He did. Gilbert looked at him in confusion as Antonio put first hoody then jacket on him. There wasn't any snow outside but the air was still chilly.  
"Toni? What are you doing?"  
Antonio was now pulling on his own jacket and digging for the leash he breathly remembered Bella had left with the dog. He gave Gilbert one of his winning smiles.  
"It's a surprise amigo."

They hadn't walked long until Antonio apparently god some crazy idea. He allowed Gilbert to walk a little ahead of him before hooking his hands under Gilbert's arms and swooping him onto his shoulders. Gilbert let out a shriek and latched tightly onto Antonio's head for dear life.  
"Naw is Gillie afriad of hights?" Antonio asked teasingly but with nothing but fondness in his voice.  
Gilbert pouted.  
"Of course not, I'm too awesome for that! I climbed an entire tree at Vash's place. You just surprised me."  
Antonio was more or less melting inside. It was no secret's he loved children (no not like that) and to have one of the persons you cared about the most in that state was only a bonus. They walked in comfortable silence with Blackie trotting beside them looking generally pleased. Antonio noticed they were grabbing some people's attention with the fair-haired boy but he couldn't care less. Finally they reached a high stone building with towers and high windows.  
"A church?" Gilbert asked sceptically.  
"Si mi pequeño amigo." Antonio said fondly. "I want to show you something."  
They had to leave Blackie outside but Antonio assured Gilbert it would not take long. Gilbert gasped when they entered and stared in awe at the beauty. He tended to forget how magnificent the catholic churches were. The church was almost empty save for a few people praying.  
"We all grow attached sometimes." Antonio whispered as they walked down the aisle. "It's the nature of being remotely human. We meet people who treat us kindly and don't judge."  
He lifted Gilbert of his shoulders and knelt down in front of the altar with his hands locked.  
" You found Fritz when you were in a hard place. Your former king wasn't really the nicest guy in the bunch and you were dreaming of being great and mighty." There was no mockery in his voice, only softness and understanding.  
"I know how much he meant to you and I'm grateful for all he did for you. I also know how much you miss him." he added the last part quiely with his eyes closed. Yet he could still hear silent sniffling. He blindly reached out and placed a palm upon Gilbert's heart.  
"He may be gone , my friend, but he is still around in the air watching over you."  
Antonio opened his eyes slowly only to find Gilbert with big fat tears streaming down his cheeks. Antonio sighed softly and reached out to embrace the child. Gilbert only cried harder but welcomed the hug by wrapping his arms around the taller's neck and burrying his face into his shirt.  
"Thank you Toni." he whispered silently.  
Antonio laughed.  
"Anything for my best friend."

That night when Gilbert had managed to convince Toni that Blackie would not kill them in their sleep and the two had curled up in Antonio's bed, (because how could Antonio possibly refuse him when he looked so sad and tired?) Gilbert dreamed about a soft hand running through his hair, and a gentle voice telling him how special he was. That night while the life outside kept on, Gilbert dreamed about Fritz.


	11. Chapter 11

**I am so proud of myself for posting everyday even though I'm about to fall asleep. **

Dec 11:  
It felt strangely familiar when Antonio woke up that morning. Warm beams of light was shinging at his face just like many pleasant mornings, and his house smelled like tomatoes. This was not the thing that felt so right. The familiar feeling was the one of a smaller body laying upon him and soft snoring along with him. For a moment he wondered if he had travelled back in time and he was yet again a great empire with his Lovi lying on top of him. He opened his emerald eyes tiredly and gazed at the not so much Italian boy but still very adored one. Antonio could vaguely remember letting Gilbert sleep in his bed and it seemed this was the case. Gilbert looked peaceful with a content smile on his face. Out of habbit from old times he reached out a tanned hand to stroke Gilbert's hair softly. The albino hummed in his sleep in content and nuzzled into the palm. He was honestly not feeling like getting up but as he glanced at the watch and realized it was nearing noon (how had they managed to sleep that long?) he sighed in defeat and made to get up. Only to freeze in his movements. The weight of Gilbert was not much of a struggle (he was an experienced parent after all) but Blackie was sitting perfectly still at the doorway and staring at him. There was no chance in hell that he would leave the bed. Instead he retracted the feet from the wooden floor and let them stay on the soft mattres, still with a sleeping Gilbert against his chest (well he was more in his lap now as Antonio was sitting up with his knees pulled up). He had to wake Gilbert up if he wanted to survive this. A glance at Gilbert changed his mind.  
He's too cute to bother.  
A new plan began forming in his head instead and with as much care as possible he placed Gilbert on the mattres. Beside his bed was a table where he had placed his watch and alarmclock. That was his first goal. The furniture creaked dangerously under his weight but it seemed to be sufficient. With a leap of faith he could make it safely to the drawer by the window. He drew a cross over his chest and whispered a quick prayer, then prepared himself to jump.  
"Toni what are you doing mon Ami?"  
Antonio cried out in surprised at the sudden voice just as he sprung of from bedside table. He collided harshly with the drawer straight in his face and his bare chest burned from the empact of the floor.  
"Francis?" he croaked out looking at the very confused Frenchman..  
He seemed even more confused when he noticed Blackie bouncing around his feet..  
"What are you doing here Amigo?"  
Francis gave him a very unimpressed look.  
"Did you forget that I called and said I would come over?  
Antonio rubbed his sore head.  
"Si I think I did, anywho now isn't a good time. I have guests. "  
Yet again Francis gave him that strange look.  
"Guests?"  
Just then, finally, Gilbert seemed to react to all the noises and moved under the blankets.  
"Toni, can you make it more quiet in here? I'm still sleepy?" came his whiny voice.  
Now Francis looked even more chocked and not the least amused.  
"Antonio, if you have kidnapped some pore child as replacement for Lovino, you know I will have to do something about it."  
Antonio huffed a little.  
"That's mean Amigo. "  
That is when Gilbert finally sat up and looked at the guest. If Francis had looked surprised before it was not even close to what he looked like now.  
"G-G-Gilbert?" He asked in astoundment.  
Gilbert rubbed his eyes for a moment then finally realized who it was.  
"Frenchie!" He leapt of the bed in a similar fashion the the way he had greeted Antonio. Francis still in daze barely managed to catch him and even less got to show any reaction. Gilbert pouted at the lack of reaction and tugged a litte at his shirt as Francis numbly put him down on the floor.  
"Frenchie?"  
"Antonio would you care to explain?" Francis asked slowly not for a moment looking at the pouting child.  
Antonio rubbed his head again.  
"Si, after Gilbert left he was atacked and turned into a kid. Since then he has been living with family and now he's here. It was Elizaveta's idea to move him around a little so that he could experience many things as a child. I was going to call you Amigo, but I was kinda dreading this reaction." he smiled sheepishly at his still frozen friend.  
Gilbert had by now given up on getting Francis to look at him so he trudged over to sulk by Blackie. He didn't like being ignored like this.  
"Why are you so calm about this Antonio?" Francis half-whispered.  
Antonio laughed softly.  
"But he's so cute Francis."  
"That's all you can think about? Why is he not with Ludwig?" Francis was reaching some kind of hysteria now.  
"Bruder was forced to a meeting in Finland and couldn't take me with him, so he brought me to Roddie, but he had to go somewhere so I went to Lizzy, and then to Lilly and now I'm with Toni."  
Gilbert was smiling again and Francis was staring at him with still strange eyes.  
"And also Blackie is with me to protect me no matter what so I'm okay!"  
There was no answer to that. Francis was quiet. Gilbert was quiet. Antonio was quiet and Blackie was mostly quiet. Finally Francis spoke.  
"I need a drink."

The three friends found themselves in a resturant later on with Francis and Antonio drinking wine and Gilbert eagerly drinking his glass of coke.  
"Gilbert." Francis said, finally adapting somehow to the idea of Gilbert being a child. "If you drink all now you wont have anything for when the food arives." he comented in a fatherly way. Gilbert pouted.  
"But I'm thirsty."  
Antonio smiled fondly and stroke Gilbert's hair.  
"Take a final gulp then put it away alright?"  
Gilbert complied with another pout and sat back to fidgetty wait for his food. Finally three plates of steaming pasta was placed before them by a cute waitress and Gilbert's face lightened.  
"Cute kid yah got there?" she said with a wink before heading of somewhere else.  
Gilbert blushed a little at the comment but decided to focus on his food instead. In all it was a pleasant dinner and save for the fact that Gilbert was but a boy, it seemed just like old times. They joked, laughed and were honest to eachother. The peace wasn't broken until almost two hours later when a waiter asked them to leave to give room for other guests. Antonio heaved Gilbert onto his shoulders again once they got out and the rest of the day was spend in the park and then at the movie-theatre and finally at another resturant. When they were finally heading home Gilbert was since long asleep with his head rested on Antonio's and the two adults talking about more adult ways. Antonio agreed that Gilbert needed to move on further so all three of them would go back to France at dawn the following day so they could spend more time together there. They made sure to call Ludwig during all this and found out that he was now stuck in a place called Mjölby. He wouldn't tell any details about it though. While Francis calmed Blackie down, Antonio got Gilbert into a PJ and tucked him into bed. A silent agreement was made between the other two and they both lay on each side of Gilbert. It wasn't the first time the three had shared bed together. Blackie rested at the foot of the bed and all was quiet.


	12. Chapter 12

**I. AM. SO. TIRED. **

**Slept six hours last night so I'm sorry for the crappy chapters enjoy.**

12 dec:  
Gilbert was unsurprisningly tired when they finally reached Francis' appartment in Paris so they tucked Gilbert in in Francis' bed to let him sleep a while longer. Blackie instantly lay down on the bed as well. As Gilbert rested Antonio and Francis sat in the kitchen to talk while Francis cooked breakfast.  
"How are you fairing amigo?"  
Francis didn't look at him.  
"How do you mean mon Ami? Most of Europe is affected by the mess in Greece but I think we should worry more about you. You're echonomy hasn't been the best.!  
As testemony to that Antonio just entered a coughing fit which put the conversation to momentary rest. Francis placed a glass of water in front of him which he gladly accepted.  
"Si my echonomy is not the best at the moment but you know I wasn't talking about that. Would you like to explain your freakout about Gilbert?"  
Now it was Francis' turn to cough but not out of sickness but out of embarrasment.  
"I thought you said that you expected such reaction." he finally said.  
Antonio smiled cheerfully.  
"Si I did, I've known you long enough, but I don't know why."  
Francis kept his eyes glued to the frying-pan and the not yet done crepe. He didn't say anything so Antonio continued.  
"Does this have anything to do with your colonial time?"  
Francis froze momentarily. Antonio noticed and took that as a yes.  
"Last time you dealt with children was when you had colonies around you and now you fear a similar reaction. You care for him and he leaves to never come back. You are afraid that if you care for Gilbert as a child he will one day grow up to resent you like your colonies and want nothing to do with you. You fear that this will tear the bad touch trio apart and Gilbert will never speak to us again. You fear that this will leave him completely alone to do something stupid. You fear that he might pass away for good if we don't keep him close. At the same time you remember what he was like at that age and that makes you scared. That side of you fear the though of what might happen to him. He's an active little child and you fear that those who look after him aren't competent enough to make sure he's safe. You fear that he will run a little ahead during a walk and run straight out in the streets and be hit by a car. You fear his body is not strong enough to heal himself and that a small accident will kill him. You fear you will have to go to a church and cary his coffin one day. You also fear the innocence of this boy. You fear he will ask you something unpleasant. You fear he will hate you for what happened after WW2. In all, you fear losing him as a friend."  
Francis had long since abandoned the crepes and stood now dead still above the sink with eyes staring blindly in front of him.  
"Y-you said you didn't know." he whispered shakily.  
Antonio smiled softly although Francis couldn't see it.  
"I'm only guessing. Would you like to confirm my theory?"  
"He's one of my best friends." Francis said shaily. "We've been through so much together. I don't want to lose him."  
Suddenly there was two arms wrapped around his waist and a head nuzzling into his shirt. Francis looked down in surprise at Gilbert and allowed himself to hug back. Antonio was still smiling softly.  
"I can either let Gilbert tell you or do it myself. We've been friends for 1500 years. We've fought battles together and on different sides. People have been hurt on all sides and wew lost people we love. But all that has been forgiven and despite all we're still friends and no little curse will change that. Do you understand? We're stronger than that."  
Francis started at him in silence for a moment before pulling Antonio in for the hug as well.  
"What have we done to deserve a friend like you?" he murmured but no response was really needed.

"Mon ami are you sure you have to go back to Spain already?"  
They were standing in the hallway now with Gilbert in Francis' arms.  
"Si I only came to Paris to make sure you would be able to live with each other. I have a... meeting in Madrid tonight."  
Francis couldn't resist the smirk and put a hand on Gilbert's ear and pressed the other to his shoulder so he couldn't hear.  
"Just make sure you pleasure your lover proporly before the act itself. The foreplay is very important."  
Antonio blushed madly and coughed in embarrasment. Changing topic he turned to Gilbert who was looking very confused. Releasing him from Francis' hand he grabbed Gilbert's face in both his hand and pressed a tender kiss to his forehead.  
"Adios mi pequeño amigo, be nice on poor Francis. He's a worry-wart."  
With a finall smile he grabbed his bag and left before he could get killed by the dog. Francis and Gilbert stood there.  
"Remind me again why we tend to think Antonio is stupid?"  
Then he though about his latest attempt in getting a date.  
"So perhaps he's not the sharpest tool in the box." he concluded. "But he's is not doubt the kindest and wisest."

"Oh my what an adorable boy!"  
To Gilbert it was like a de'javu (sorry no idea how to spell it) to have someone swooning over him only this woman was perhaps in her twenties. Gilbert shied away as usuall, only this time they had left Blackie at the appartment, and the woman laughed. All this swooning was starting to annoy him something that Francis noted in great amusement.  
"Don't look so distressed mon petit ami. We will be leaving in a moment."  
And true to his words so they did.

The day was spent similar to the previous one only without Antonio. After a pleasant dinnner at a rasturant they were now heading home.  
"Do you think Toni knew I was eves-dropping on you two?" Gilbert asked.  
Francis simply chuckled.  
"I don't doubt it for a second. My guess is that he had it all planned out in last detail for us to clear things out."  
Gilbert smiled softly and squeezed Francis' hand tighter.  
"He's awesome."  
Francis squeezed back with another chuckle.  
"He is with no doubt. "  
Further down the sidewalk they could see two men and wobbling dangerously and laughing loud enough to wake up the entire neighborhood. Francis concidered crossing the street and walk on the other side but that would only raise the risk of them giving a damn about them. Hopefully they would just ignore the duo. Then again Francis wasn't such a lucky guy now adays. One of the men stopped and stared a long while at Gilbert.  
"Hey Henry look at this kid! He's cute."  
The man adressed as Henry peered at him as well with a malicious sneer.  
"This thing, Paul? Looks like a creep!"  
Francis coughed stifly and pulled Gilbert closer.  
"Excuse me it would mean a lot if you would kindly move."  
Henry and Paul allowed their eyes to stray to him instead.  
"You're don't look to bad either! Yah got a name hun?"  
Francis wrinkled his nose in disgust as strong alcoholic breath mixed with cigars and probably weed hit his face. He remembered similar situations as a boy where people would mix him up for a girl but this was redicolous. Gilbert was clutching at his sleeve fearfully. He didn't bother to aknowledge the question.  
"Come mon petit ami, we're leaving."  
He tugged at Gilbert's hand and attempted to move passed them but Henry reached out and tugged Gilbert back.  
"Whacha sayin kid. Wanna come with us guys or act slave to your boring daddy?"  
All of the sudden there was a click and a gun was pressed to Henry's forehead.  
"If you don't revome your filthy hand from my boy's shoulder right now, I'm going to shoot your brains out." He growled dangerously.  
Fortunately for him, the two men seemed to react to that and so they let go of Gilbert. The later instantly ran over to properly be by Francis' side. Francis didn't remove his gaze from the two men until they were far out of sight. Finally he lowered the gun and tucked it into his inside pocket. He hugged Gilbert long and tightly while a shaking Gilbert was clinging to him for dear life.

"That's the last time I'm letting you out of the house."

**Please R and R sorry for the crappy ending,**


	13. Chapter 13: Happy Lucia

**Happy Lucia everyone! Oh that's right it's like only Sweden who celebrates it. If anyones interested it's a celebration we do in honor of an italian saint called Lucia who devoted herself to god or something like that and was killed for witchcraft. (I think) anywho this is celebrated at our place with people singing carrols and eating saffron buns. And here's the next chapter.**

13 dec:  
Gilbert blinked his eyes open as sun shone through the curtains and straight into his face. He had vague memories of the two walking home but he couldn't really set any details to it. Blackie lay protectively at his side while Francis was on his right. All was silent. It wasn't often that Gilbert was the first to wake up in a house seeing as he usually slept in for as long as possible before someone forced him to wake up. He crawled out of the bed as quietly as possible and trodded out of the room. After last night Gilbert figured it would be better to find some adventures inside rather than sneak out. The kitchen was his first thought but he chose not to. He rembered that he himself always told Ludwig not to go into the kitchen, although he couldn't remember why. He turned his attention elsewhere and gazed around the flourish living room. There were plenty of nice places to climb in the room. Perhaps those were could hiding-places from the crocodiles on the floor.

Francis woke up with a start by a crashing sound coming from the living room. Worry filled his mind as he realized that he was only sharing his bed with a dog. (And surprisingly this was not the first time it happened). He hurried barefooted out in the larger room to find Gilbert sitting on the floor amongst rosepetals and blue shards from a vase. In panic Francis hurried over and scooped Gilbert away from the mess. He sat him on the couch and instantly started looking for injuries.  
"What happened Gilbert? Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere?"  
Gilbert's lip trembled a bit.  
"Just in my hand." he mumbled, revealing his blodied right hand.  
Francis hissed at the sight and got up to get tweezers and bandages. Gilbert had survived quite well but he had managed to get a shard stuck rather deeply into his palm and it needed to be tended to instantly. When he returned, Blackie was licking at his good hand affectionately and trying to comfort the child. Francis knelt before him when he entered and gestuered for his injured hand.  
"This might hurt a little Gilbert." he mumbled.  
Gilbert whimpered as the shard was pulled out and the injure was dabbed with a rag before placing the bandage on. Finally Francis kissed the injury softly and put the things away.  
"Stay seated while I clean all of this up." he unstructed while walking to fetch broom and a dustpan.  
Gilbert said nothing about it and remained where he was. Once all was cleaned up, Francis once again turned to Gilbert. He needed to find something for the boy to do. Finally he had an idea.  
"I have some paper-work I need to get finished, so I was hoping that you could play with some of Mathieu's old toys in my office while I do so. Gilbert nodded silently in agreement and Francis smiled.  
"But first breakfast."

Francis looked up every minute or so to check on the albino and found to his amusement that Gilbert had used all of Mathieu's old toys to set up a battlefield in his office. He suposed he shouldn't have been too surprsied considering that Gilbert was a battle-nation, but it was still sweet. Yet as the hours passed by, Francis noticed with a frown that something was of. He might have noticed it before but first now it was settling in. He, a long while, sat silently and stared at the boy and his dog, willing himself to remember what was missing. Then it dawned on him.  
"Gilbert?" he asked.  
Said boy looked up with a smile and tilted his head to his side.  
"Yeah? Whazup?"  
"Where's Gilbird?"  
Gilbert blinked in surprise then shrugged.  
"I dunno. He was with me during the attack I'm sure but I haven't seen him since."  
Francis frowned. Now that he knew the chick was missing it felt strange to imagine he wasn't there.  
"Aren't you worried about him?"  
Gilbert shrugged again.  
"Yeah but I know he'll come back. He always does." he said the part with an almost convincing smile.  
Francis' gaze softened.  
"Do you miss him?"  
At this Gilbert's smile saddened and he looked down on his lap.  
"Yeah."  
Well that wouldn't do it. He had worried that Gilbert would get upset about the past and all but to have him upset about the present was even worce. He put away the pen and got.  
"We're going on a short trip."

The mall was busy and full on people shopping for presents. Francis had a tight grip on Gilbert's hand as he guided him through the crowd. They finally reached a toy-store crowded with people. Gilbert looked at his friend in confusion.  
"Helo sir." A preppy young girl said with a wide smile. "How may I help you?"  
Francis flashed a dazzling smile to the attendant.  
"Well my son here is very upset you see because he lost his pet recently and I thought a toy might shear him up."  
Clair, that's at least what it stood on the nametag, smiled adoringly and knelt down to Gilbert's heigth.  
"Well isn't your daddy the sweetest! Is there something special you'd like?"  
"I want Gilbird." he muttered shyly.  
Somehow the attendant understood that Gilbird was the pet and a bird.  
"Well I don't have Gilbird perhaps, but I think there might be a toy that looks like him. What color was he?"  
"Yellow." Francis' answered noticing that Gilbert was straying towards the brim of depression. Clair smiled excitedly.  
"Did you have little canary? Wait here a moment!"  
Before Francis could respond Clair had rushed of amongst the shelves. She returned only a moment later with a stuffed yellow bird the size of a fairly large teddy-bear. Gilbert's eyes widened and the moment Clair lowered the toy, Gilbert hugged it tightly to his chest.  
"It seems like he likes it." Clair said with a chukle.  
Francis chuckled as well.  
"It seems that way, we'll take it."  
Clair smiled pleasantly.  
"Rigth this way sir."

Blackie was very suspicious about the yellow thing at first but it seemed like Gilbert like him so he did as well. Things very finally settling down in the apartment and they were back in the office. All was peaceful until.  
"Are you still mad at me?" Francis' head shot up like a rocket to stare at the boy.  
"Pardon? Why on earth would I be mad at you mon petit?"  
There was no uncertainity around Gilbert. He was staring straight back and Francis' like he would in an adult confrontation. The question itself had been formed rather bluntly.  
"Antonio mentioned that you feared my reaction to World War Two so I figured he was talking about the invation of France. "  
Francis' flinched at the memory of that but shook his head.  
"Non, my fear is your reaction on what I did to you after the war."  
Gilbert was still.  
"Oh."  
Uncomfortable silence settled around the two and neither spoke a word. The phone rang and Francis' hurried to pick up.  
"Bonjour? This is Francis Bonnefoy. Who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?"  
"Frog don't think for a second that I want to talk to you!"  
Francis smirked.  
"Bonjour l'Angleterre. Did you miss me that much?"  
Arthur scoffed loudly.  
"Hardly I'm calling about Gilbert."  
Francis raised a thin eyebrow and hummed for Arthur to continue.  
"Ludwig called and asked me so shit about magic. I said I'd give it at try and take Gilbert to London for a while to see if I could find a solution."  
"So you know about Gilbert?"  
"Yes you frog that's what I just said. I'm a busy man so I would appreciate it if you could get him safely to London as soon as tomorrow. I'm going over for a meeting in America in just a couple of days.  
"I'm not sure I want Gilbert in such a dangerous place as London. What if he get's lost or kidnapped?  
"I've raised many boys myself you frog. I'm asure you Gilbert is in safe hands with me."  
Francis sighed in annoyance.  
"Fine we'll be over with my private jet somewhere around noon. Au Revoir. "  
He looked over to Gilbert with a sigh.  
"We're going on a trip Gil."

**Please review and tell me what you think as well as telling me your shipping with Prussia, just out of curiosity.**


	14. Chapter 14

**I hate this chapter**

14 dec:  
"You have to let go of him eventually." Arthur said dryly as he stared at the two on the airport. Francis sent him a glare but let Gilbert out of his hug anyway.  
"Well then I guess this is were we part mon petit ami." he said softly to Gilbert. "Make sure not to eat anything Arthur gives you."  
Gilbert snickered as he heard Arthur sputter indignantly behind him. Francis got up again and ruffled Gilbert's hair a last time. Arthur watched the Frenchman leave before turning to Gilbert.  
"Well come one lad, no need to look so distressed. Let's go and fetch Blackie."  
He took Gilbert's bag in one hand and took Gilbert's in the other.

The car-ride to Arthur's house was silent and rather awkward. Unlike the previous ones Gilbert had been with he and Arthur had never really gotten along well. Wars and drunken arguments (not to mention WW2) had left them in a bad tention that was yet to clear out. They ended at the house, still in silence apart from Blackie's happy barking at being let out of the car.  
"I suppose you'd like some lunch before we set to work." Arthur began.  
Gilbert interupted by shaking his head furiously and clutching at his stuffed chicken for dear life. Arthur frowned a little, something that looked really scary in the eyes of a child, and unlocked the door.  
"You will have to eat eventually, lad. It's either now or later."  
Arthur then decided to talk a little more softly as Gilbert looked about scared to death. He sighed heavily and ruffled Gilbert's hair.  
"I am not going to kill you chap. I'm not that bad of a guy."  
The coment didn't do much to ease Gilbert's troubled mind but it ridded some of the tention. Arthur shot a glance at the watch. It was not even 11 yet.  
"Well there's no use in wasting time." he said half to himself half to Gilbert. "Let's see if we can't get you back to an adult."

The basement was dark and dusty and Gilbert sneezed several times while down there. He was sitting on top of a desk while Arthur was looking through tons of books in a language he vaguely recognized as latin. Now and then Arthur would look like he'd found something but then he would frown and look further while grumbling random curses. Finally, hours later, he seemed satisfied and got up from his chair. Without talking he grabbed the book and a chalk and went to the middle of the room. He shooed Blackie, who had been lying percisely there, away and bent down on his knees. With impressive perfection he drew a pentagram and added the required runes for this specific spell. It took a little while but finally he felt satisfied with his work. Still wordslessly he lifted Gilbert of the table and set him in the middle of the pentagram.  
"Don't move." he instructed shortly before stepping out himself and grabbing his book. "If I've got this right, you will be the same obnoxious Prussian as you were before."  
He stretched out his right palm so it was pointing at Gilbert and started chanting rapidly in latin. Gilbert had learned some latin as young when all bibles were writen in the ancient language but this fast it was impossible for him to follow. Finally Arthur yelled in a loud and clear voice.  
"Retexamus quod semel erat!"  
There was a flash of red light streaming from his palm going straight for Gilbert. Gilbert's eyes were wide in fear and Arthur's were narrowed in determination.  
BOOM!

Arthur coughed heavily as he got himself up from where he had landed in a corner.  
"A-are you alright Gilbert?" he called out through the layers of dust and coughed again as some of it entered his lungs.  
"Y-Yeah." Gilbert wheezed out from another part of the room, followed by a whining sound from Blackie.  
"Is Blackie alright?" Arthur asked.  
"Yeah he's just scared I think." came Gilbert's reply.  
Arthur sighed in relief and scanned the room. The dust was finally clearing and he could finally get a look on the damage.  
"What the bloody hell!"  
The room was in more or less perfect condition. All shelves stood where they should as well as tables and chairs. Even a withered pot on the windowsill stood unaffected by the blast that had thrown Arthur all the way across the room. There was though a great difference to the room. Every free space in the room was covered in powdery cold white snow that sparkled from an unknown source.  
"What happened?" Gilbert asked in confusion.  
"How should I know. There is no curse even close to that one that produces snow. And most certainly not inside!  
"Dissolvere!" he yelled with a wave of the hand but to his disdain nothing happened. "Dissolvere!" he yelled again but yet again nothing happened.  
Arthur cursed under his breath and pulled Gilbert to his feet.  
"Let's eat."

Gilbert poked misserably at the supposedly potato and tried to ignore the complaints his stomach. Never in his life would he imagined that one could burn potatoes but he supposed every day was a day of surprises. Arthur was watching him closely with a slight frown on his face.  
"You're not eating." he commented matter of factly.  
Gilbert didn't look up.  
"I'm not hungry." he lied.  
Somehow as if in mocking his bad lie, his stomach chose that exact moment to grumble loudly and give away the lie. Arthur heaved another sigh and reached for the plate to put it away. He scraped the food into the tin and put the plate in the sink for now to be washed up later.  
"If you didn't want my food you could just have told me so. Now it will be another 20 minutes or so before you get something to eat."  
Arthur had now walked over to the kitchen-phone and dialed a number.  
"I hope you like chinese better."

The takeout was indeed better than the burnt potatoes and he ate eagerly. Arthur had a calm smile on his face as he chewed on his own food. The tension from earlier was all gone and replaced by a comfortable silence that surrendered all off the house. Around ten or so Arthur coughed a little to bring to boy's attention to him.

"It's getting late lad, you should be heading to bed soon."

Gilbert pouted.

"But I'm not tired."

Arthur gave him an unimpressed look. The way Gilbert was struggling to keep his eyes open was telling him another story.

"There's not need to make this complicated Gilbert. Do you want me to tuck you in?"

Gilbert shook his head quickly and Arthur gave a resigned sigh.

"As you wish, but your still going to bed."

He ushered Gilbert out of his chairs and pushed him up the stairs gently (well it's was more like carrying him without Gilbert realizing it).

Gilbert didn't say anything when they got up and shut the door directly in Arthur's face. Arthur frowned at this but left it be. Something was going on with the Prussian and he was going to find out what, as soon as he'd gotten some sleep of course.

C YAH NXT DAY


	15. Chapter 15

**Sorry It's late, sorry it's short, sorry it sucks.**

15 dec:

It was true that Arthur had not always acted like the best ruler over his colonies (many nations still glared at him during the meetings) but he had never EVER harmed a child in any single way, and throughout the years he had developed a seventh sense (his sixth sense was the ability to see fairies). So when he woke somewhere around two in the morning he knew all too well that something was wrong. He pulled away the covers and got into his slippers in a matter of seconds and hurried down the hall to the guestroom. True to his concerns sniffling could be heard from the other side of the door along with a dog's whining. He pushed open the door slowly and found Gilbert hugging his chicken tightly.

"Gilbert, are you alright?" Arthur asked softly and entered the room.

Gilbert startled and look up with teary eyes.

"No nothing is wrong, I didn't mean to wake you up."

As Arthur neared, Gilbert scooted the other way. Arthur frowned a little and Gilbert scooted further. Slowly Arthur knealt in front of the bed so he was making eyecontact with the boy.

"You're not afraid of me are you?"

Gilbert didn't answer but he kept looking at him fearfully and clutching the chicken tightly. Arthur took that as a yes.

"You know your brother would most likely kill me if you were harmed in any way?" there was a hint of amusement in Arthur's voice. Gilbert nodded. "Also I assure that in my life I have never harmed a child."

"Of course you have." Gilbert muttered. "You were once the big mean empire."

Arthur shrugged a little.

"True that my people weren't the nicest and that I could have acted more politely towards some colonies but I cared for all my children with greatest love. You needn't worry."

Gilbert still didn't look convinced and kept himself hidden behind the chicken and Blackie. Arthur stifled a yawn and looked at the pale nation.

"I won't come any closer but would you at least tell me what's got you so upset?"

Gilbert was stubbornly silent for a while but finally he mumbled his answer quietly.

"This room is really scary." He muttered. "And I had a nightmare that Bruder died."

Arthur looked at him in compassion and reached out a pale hand.

"Your brother is a strong nation and he won't be going anywhere soon. It was just a nightmare. If you trust me enough, then perhaps my room is less scary?"

Gilbert knew what was being offered to him. Arthur offered for him to sleep in his bed and thereby be protected, something he had grown used of with Antonio and Francis. There was no of the coldness Gilbert was used to seeing in Arthur eyes. All they held was kindness and sincerity. Gilbert reached out hesitantly to the hand. Just then something creaked in the old house and with a cry of fear Gilbert threw himself in Arthur's arm. Arthur chuckled warmly and held him tightly.

"It's just the wind lad. It'll be fine."

The following morning Gilbert woke up in Arthur's bed with snow falling softly outside the window. Blackie was resting at the foot of the bed and his chicken was in his arms. It seemed in all like a good day. He heard Arthur groan next to him and soon foggy green eyes opened.

"I see you're up." He mumbled sleepily while sitting up. "Did you sleep any better?

Gilbert nodded.

"Good, because I thought about a new spell that might turn you into an adult."

Gilbert couldn't help but smile eagerly.

"Really?"

Arthur winked at him while changing into a new shirt.

"You bet! But we need to get to town and buy a few things." He muttered as an afterthought. It seemed as though they were taking a trip to town.

The London Underground was crowded as hell with thousands of people rushing to buy their Christmas-gifts and such. Arthur held onto Gilbert tightly at the arm and somehow managed to guide him to the right platform. With a few minutes until the train would arrive, Arthur knelt before Gilbert and held out his cell-phone.

"I want you to have my personal cell-phone just in case something happen, alright?"

Gilbert nodded and Arthur got up with a smile.

"That's a good boy. Now I need your help to remember what we need. The most important thing is the herbs, thought these are things we can find at many places I prefer a rather nice shop at Covent Garden. It's all made out of natural recources."  
The train finally arrived and Arthur.

"There we are come along lad."

Arthur turned to usher Gilbert to walk, only to find the albino gone.

"Gilbert? " He called out carefully. When no answer came he called a little louder and a little more panicked. "Gilbert!" But there was no boy in sight.

Arthur scanned the entire plat-form in frenzy but found nothing. He pulled out his phone with shaky hands only to find that he had no reception down here anyway. He had to get up to ground-level before he could call. He sprinted up the stairs, mumbling apologizes to those he bumbed into and didn't stop until he was outside in the snow. He reached into his pocket only to freeze. He couldn't remember his personal number and he didn't have it on his phone.

"Damn it all!" He yelled out in frustration, gathering quite a few glances from passerbye. He slumped down on a desk and buried his head in his hands. All he could do now was pray some nice person would find him and help him call Arthur so he could come and get him. The waiting was long and his fingers were numb. Then there was a call to his phone.

"H-helo!" Arthur answered shakily only to have his heart sink at the sound of Matthews voice.

"Arthur is that you?" the quiet voice asked. "I just called your private phone and a boy who claims to be Gilbert answered. Is everything alright?

"I can't explain now." Arthur said shakily. "Did he tell you where he was?"

"Yeah he said was at Kings Cross."

Arthur sighed.

"Alright thank you, I'll call you back."

And so Arthur started to run as fast as his feet could take him. He slalomed through old people, mother's teenagers and dogs and finally reached the terminal. He more or less crashed into the information desk.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for a child at the age of seven with pale skin, almost white hair and red eyes."

The woman behind the desk smiled sweetly and moved a little so Arthur could see Gilbert sitting there.

"You know what Gil?" he asked breathlessly through the window.

Gilbert tilted his head.

"Your going to Canada."


	16. Chapter 16

**New chapter and hopefully not as bad as last one. In my deffense I was really tired and remembered to write it like half an hour before midnight. Enjoy!**

16 dec.

Matthew let out a surprised oof as he was tackled to the ground by the cheer force of Gilbert's hug. He giggled softly and hugged him back.

"It's good to see you too Gil, are you alright?"

"Artie lost me on in the middle of London Underground but I'm good now."

Arthur coughed indignantly.

"I believe the term lost can be discussed in this situation. As far as I'm concerned you were the one to wander of when I told you to stay put."

Gilbert stuck out his tongue towards the other and Arthur scowled a little. Matthew only giggled.

"It seems like a six hour flight or so did wonders for you relationship." He said softly as he got up.

Both the two other's glared at each other showing off that they did not get along at all. Quite the opposite actually. The plane-ride had been absolutely torture for everyone of there and had brought Arthur to near exhaustion. With renewed confidence Gilbert had decided to try his limits and nag the entire way and whining about everything. Arthur was beyond thrilled to get rid of the boy.

"Thank you for looking after him Matthew, I wish you all luck."

Matthew smiled sweetly.

"No problem. Good luck with yours and Alfred's meeting."

Arthur sighed in annoyance.

"I need more than luck to be able to stand him for an entire meeting." He grumbled. "Good day you two I must leave now." He muttered to them swiftly before heading of. Matthew smiled.

"Still same old Arthur."

"Birdie can I have pancakes?" Gilbert asked excitedly as they entered Matthew's cozy house along with Blackie and Kumajiro. The bear wasn't too fond of the new guests so he instantly snuck away to sulk somewhere. Matthew cast a glance at the watch and grinned widely.

"Sure thing Gil, wanna help me make them?"

Gilbert nodded eagerly and bounced over to give another over-excited hug.

"Yay! Can we have lots of maple-syrup on top?"

"What kind of question is that?"

Matthew gave the boy a quizzical look and for a moment Gilbert wondered if that was too much to ask. Then Matthew smiled and scooped Gilbert into his arms who squeeled loudly.

"Of course we'll have maple-syrup to go with the pancakes!"

He started tickling Gilbert's side until he was writhing in his arms in fits of laughters.

The commotion brought Blackie to the room but he was currently ignored by the two nations. When Matthew deemed Gilbert calm enough to help make pancakes he placed him on the counters and started pulling out all the ingredients. He allowed Gilbert to crack the eggs and ad in the right amount of flour and milk into the batter while he himself blended it all together and finished them in the pan. In all it was a delightful morning until Matthew looked closely at the boy.

"Gil what happened to your hand?"

Gilbert looked down upon and remembered the bandage that had been placed around his hand. The bandage was slightly red.

"I cut my hand my last morning with Frenchie. He said I shouldn't take it off and ask Arthur to take a look at it but I forgot. "

Matthew frowned slightly and turned off the over for now. He reached out his hand to the albino and looked him in the eyes.

"Let me see." He inquired and Gilbert did as he was asked.

The bandage was unraveled and Matthew scanned it critically. His papa knew how to take care of a wound but it had not yet closed and needed a change of bandages. He got up and disappeared for a while before turning back with his own first aid kit. Gilbert stared intently as the still open wound was wrapped tenderly yet firmly around his hand

"Nation's heal better than mortals." He mumbled almost monotonously as it was a thing he had explained to many leaders in the past. Matthew looked up a moment at the comment but Gilbert continued. " We cannot be severely affected by mortal weapons and live until our nations fall. I cut in the hand can be healed within a couple of minutes depending on how deep it is and a paper-cut is gone before the passing of five seconds. It's the people of our nations that give us that ability. With the love of our citizens we are given the strength to fight for them. Without that love, well... the first sign is that you no longer feel the life of your people within your veins. Then weakening of your body and your endless need for sleep. After that you become more aggressive and feel the need to get the way. Then you stop healing properly. That's the last sign before…" Gilbert swallowed. "When you stop healing, it's just a matter of days before you die."

Gilbert was cut off by strong caring arms around him and he felt himself break in tears in the Canadians embrace. Matthew rocked him back and forth, petted his hair and whispered sweet nothings in his ear about how special Gilbert was and that he of course wouldn't leave earthy any time soon. They stood like that for a long while as Blackie watched them with said and cautious eyes. Eventually, Matthew moved around the kitchen while moving around plates and utensils with one hand and holding onto Gilbert with the other.

He placed two plates of pancakes on the floor and two on the table amongst a bottle of maple-syrup. He prayed it wouldn't be the worst disaster to feed a dog with pancakes and it wasn't like Blackie was a normal dog anyway. Blackie instantly bolted over to one of the plates and ate happily, while Kumajiro entered the room in a slower and perhaps more dignified pace. Matthew giggled at the sight and released himself from Gilbert's arms so he could put him in one of the chairs.

"Eat a little, eh? It'll make you feel better."

Gilbert still looked very upset but he was only sniffling now. The boy nodded and wiped his eyes furiously.

"I'm gunna stop crying now cause I'm that awesome!"  
Matthew smiled fondly and reached over to pet Gilbert's hair.

"Of course you are Gil. "

They ate most of their late lunch in silence save for occasional sniffles but when the plates were cleared he was obviously feeling better.

"I told you food would help!" Matthew said cheerfully

Gilbert smiled somewhat brightly at him and Matthew couldn't help but giggle as the boy was more or less covered in syrup all over his face. How had he gotten so messy?

"Come on you little ball of awesomeness. Let's get you cleaned up."

He scooped the boy up, careful not to get any syrup on his face and carried him to the bathroom. Gilbert once realizing his impending doom instantly started to struggle. It proved useless as he was soon sitting with a very sour expression in the water while Matthew washed his hair with patience. The once clean and dry bathroom looked more like a setting of war than a bathroom and the floor, Matthew and Gilbert's clothes were soaked thoroughly. Despite all this, Matthew had a calm expression on his face and seemed almost amused by Gilbert's face. As the torture finally was over Matthew drained the water and wrapped the boy in a big fuzzy towel and carried him to his room to get them both into a set of dry clothes. Somehow hours had ticked by and it was nearing ten in the evening. Matthew would of course usually go to bed later after he had finished his paper -work but somehow he felt that those things could wait until the morning. He got Gilbert changed into his flannel-pajamas and tucked him into the fairly large bed. Gilbert snuggled contently into the sheets and smiled sleepily as Matthew handed him his chicken and Blackie lay on the floor next to him. Kumajiro, who still didn't like this, rested reluctantly at the foot of the bed while Matthew crawled in under their covers as well.

"Goodnight Gil." He fondly and placed a quick kiss to Gilbert's still damp hair.

Gilbert smiled and yawned widely.

"Goodnight Birdie." He mumbled and not much longer he was fast asleep.


	17. Chapter 17

**I never thought it would be this exhausting to post every day but I can't wait for the month to be over :-)**

Dec 17:

When they had woken up that morning all had been peaceful. Kumajiro was still not too thrilled about having Gilbert and Blackie there but his lousy mood was hardly enough to put the two of mood. They cooked a lovely breakfast with pancakes and Gilbert was all smiles. After that Matthew had decided to take Gilbert and Blackie for a walk in favor of paper-work. Matthew had taken Gilbert to the park and for once it seemed that he had no problems interacting with the other children. Matthew watched fondly from a bench with Blackie how Gilbert tumbled around the play-ground with the other boys and girls in some kind of adventure. The other kids seemed to like his wild imagination and cheery attitude. A young girl sat down next to him shyly.  
"Are you here with a sibling as well?" she asked with a shy smile.  
Matthew smiled charmingly back.  
"Not really brother, he's a friend of the family, kinda." He said with a nervous chuckle.  
"My mom forced me to take my brother here." The girl informed with a roll of her eyes.  
Matthew nodded silently. They fell into an awkward silence. It wasn't that Matthew was all unsocial like Arthur, but flirting like this was just pointless.  
"My brother is the one with the red jacket." The girl informed.  
Matthew nodded calmly but said nothing.  
"Does he like it here?"  
Matthew shrugged.  
"Well that's nice. Maybe he'll make friends with my brother."  
"Doesn't really matter since Gil is leaving in just a couple of days."  
The girl raised an eyebrow.  
"Really? Why is that?"  
"Well as soon as Gilbert's brother is back from his trip in Sweden he'll be going home."  
Matthew replied with a lazy yawn. The girl nodded hesitantly. Just then they spotted two guys a bit away holding hands. They looked happy and at that moment the shorter stole a kiss from the other. The girl clicked her tongue in disgust.  
"People shouldn't be allowed to be like that in public." She said disdainfully.  
Matthew didn't reply, mentally counting how many in his family she offended by that statement.  
"I mean it's just so wrong don't you think? Breaking God's words like that."  
Matthew didn't answer.  
"I guess we can all joy at the fact that God will punish them."  
Matthew still didn't answer.  
"You do believe in God right?"  
Matthew made a small hum.  
"And the kid?  
"Last time I checked." Matthew muttered.  
"Good because my mother would have a fit I let him play with a heathen."  
Matthew didn't answer. The girl squinted towards the kids and her eyes landed on Gilbert.  
"That kid looks awfully pale." She commented. "I wonder if he's sick." Her nose was scrunched in disgust.  
Matthew shrugged.  
"There's nothing wrong with your kid right?"  
"No." Matthew muttered standoffish.  
The girl smiled sweetly.  
"That's good to know. I can't even imagine the horror to have an abnormal brother."  
Matthew's eyebrow twitched but he said nothing.  
"Imagine the horror of having such a demonic child in the family!"  
Matthew shrugged. The girl frowned.  
"You don't do much flirting do you?"  
No finally Matthew became responsive and he flashed a brilliant smile that was enough to cause the girl to blush deeply.  
"Quite the opposite madame. See my parents are from France and England so I've inherited the manners of a British gentleman and the skill to flirt like a true Frenchman. My papa taught me all of how to flirt. I can tell you how amazingly the snow accentuates your eyes, how I used to love my father's rose garden as a child but your beauty truly outstands all his roses and when I first saw you I was sure I was no longer on earth but amongst God's angel." The girl was blushing furiously now as Matthew pulled a strand of hair behind her hair. "However," he said with a crooked smile. "All of that knowledge is useless because I have no interest in flirting with you. I already have a boyfriend." He said with a cold smile. He turned around.  
"Hey Gil! It's time to go home!"  
Gilbert came running and if the girl had looked shocked when he said he had a boyfriend it was nothing compared to her look of shock now. Matthew scooped Gilbert up and untied Blackie's leash. He turned a final smile, charming enough to match one of Francis'.  
"Papa also taught me not to act like a judgmental bitch."  
He winked a final time and wandered off in the snow.

It was when they arrived home with all smiles that things took a turn. At his doorstep stood a tall blonde man with a pink scarf and a beige coat. Ivan turned and smiled not so entirely pleasantly.  
"Matthew. Privet." His smile turned to one surprise when he noticed Gilbert. "What is this?"  
"Will he hurt me?" Gilbert whimpered.  
Matthew glanced down at the boy who was clutching to his leg for dear life. He then glanced up at the smiling Russian. He understood Gilbert's fear. Although he had only read about it the news and heard it passing from other nation's he knew what Gilbert had suffered through. Keeping his gaze steady on the pale nation Matthew pulled Gilbert even closer.  
"Are you?" He asked without a hint of fear in his voice.  
Ivan smiled creepily which of course did nothing to help his cause.  
"You do not trust me da?"  
Matthew's eyes narrowed dangerously in a very uncharacteristic way.  
"Gilbert is still under my care and I will make sure he is on a perfectly safe place before I let him go. Considering your past I have no reason to trust you."  
Ivan kept smiling.  
"You are acting silly da? Why would I hurt him?"  
Matthew snorted.  
"Like I said you have a pretty bad past."  
Ivan smiled.  
"Da, but big sister says I can't do that."  
Matthew raised an eyebrow.  
"Is Katysusha at your place?"  
"Da she's staying there for Christmas."  
Matthew heaved a sigh. He really didn't want Gilbert to go to Russia but he had had it all explained and even Arthur thought that change of environment might have a good affect on his aging and having Katysusha there would surely make a difference for Gilbert's safety.  
"Gilbert go find Blackie." Matthew mumbled and the boy did as told. The moment he left Matthew turned to stare icily at Ivan.  
"You know I'm dangerous when I lose it." he began slowly. "And let's make it all clear." Matthew took a step closer so he was just inches away from the other. "One scratch on his body," he practically growled. "And I will make sure your revolution feels like a tingle compared to my wrath. You now what I'm capable."  
Ivan smiled down at him.  
"Da, I'll keep him safe."  
Gilbert was back in the doorway with Blackie and Matthew smiled warmly at him.  
"Well Gil, all is well. You have Katysusha ensuring your safety and if Ivan makes a mistake hell breaks lose. Is that at least some comfort?"  
Gilbert nodded tearfully and bit his lip. Matthew smiled sadly.  
"That's my brave boy."

Matthew watched from the window as the car sped of towards the airport. He wasn't sure how things would turn out for the other nation but he prayed it would go well. He turend when he heard his cell-phone go off.  
"Helo?" he said in confusion.  
"Gutten Tag Matthew. How are you doing."  
Matthew smiled.  
"Helo Ludwig I'm fine and you."  
Ludwig heaved an annoyed sigh.  
"Don't ask me how it happened but I managed to take the wrong turn so I've been going north most of the day and now I'm in a city called Karlstad, so it will take me even longer to get home. How is Gilbert?"  
"He just left." Matthew responded. "Ivan..."  
"IVAN!" Ludwig yelled over the phone. "You sent mein Bruder to Russia!"  
Matthew rubbed his ear.  
"No need to yell, eh? And don't worry I've made the terms clear to him. One mistake and Ivan is done for. Anyway I need to go. Bye."  
"Wait Matthew..."****


	18. Chapter 18

**Zup dudes! Another day is here and I'm feeling great. I'm feeling awesome! Sorry, let me know if you know what I just quoted. The snow is gone at my place and I leave for Christmas-break in only two days and tomorow my day ends at like 12 so I'm for once in a good mood. And for that I post this, enjoy!**

****

18 dec:  
He didn't know what had come to him when he insisted on taking Gilbert with him to his mansion. Perhaps it was for the sake of nostalgia or just something triggering about the look on Gilbert's face. Either way he was pleased to have him there and was going to make the best of it. Gilbert had fallen asleep during the journey so it was an easy task to carry him from the car to one of the many rooms. Katysusha gave him a questioning look when he entered but he just smiled and assured her that he would tell eventually. Blackie followed him closely behind and wrapped himself around Gilbert the best he could as soon as Ivan had placed him in the bed. For a moment Blackie stared at him with bared teeth but then he rested his head on top of Gilbert and fell asleep. Ivan smiled as usual and allowed the two to rest in peace.  
"Vanya? Are you going to explain."  
Ivan smiled cheerfully at his sister and sat down in his favorite chair by the fire.  
"Da! Gilbert got turned into a kid and I'm looking after him for a while."  
Katysusha didn't object but she did say calmly.  
"It's a very big responsibility Vanya. Do you need help?"  
Ivan shook his head.  
"Nyet, I think I can handle him."  
Katysusha heaved a sigh and sat herself on the ground by the fire-place. Her dark blue eyes bore into him.  
"Can you handle him, or take care of him?"  
Ivan understood what she meant and nodded thoughtfully.  
"Da I won't hurt him." He finally said and Katysusha smiled in relief.  
"He's probably hungry. I'll go make some lunch."

Gilbert's eyes widened in panic once he woke up and found himself in a very familiar room. It was the very same where he had spent his years under Ivan's rule. He found that Blackie was there with him though as well as his chicken, something that made him feel a little bit safer. He flinched when there was a knock on the door and crawled as far back in the bed as possible as the door opened. Ivan smiled at him when he entered.  
"Good to see that you are up, da?"  
Gilbert nodded shakily and Ivan smiled, a little bit warmer this time.  
"You don't need to look so scared da? I promised big sister and Matthew that I wouldn't hurt you, da?"  
Gilbert nodded slowly not really wanting to trust the Russian.  
"So then we can be friends again." Ivan concluded happily.  
Gilbert glared at Ivan for his stupid proposal.  
"No we can't." he said sourly.  
Ivan shook his head.  
"At least come down stairs for lunch. Big sister has made something nice." Ivan bargained.  
Gilbert left the bed reluctantly but made sure to keep his distance from Ivan. Ivan just smiled at his small victory and prayed that food would set him in a better mood.

The food once again did the trick and Gilbert was now almost acting confidently. He was still clutching at his stuffed animal but his grip on Blackie's collar had loosened.  
"Ivan?" Katysusha spoke in and old version of Russian, that she was sure Gilbert wouldn't understand.  
"Da?" Ivan asked.  
"It's good that Gilbert is getting more confident but he needs to get activated."  
Ivan tilted his head.  
"How?"  
"Take him outside with Blackie for a while. The clouds are getting darker but you should have an hour or so before it starts to fall. Once the blizzard sets in he might not be able to get out in a while."  
Ivan pondered this for a while and decided it was a good idea. In normal Russian he said.  
"Let's get outside."

With only minor assistance from Katysusha, Ivan managed to get Gilbert bundled up enough for the cold Russian whether. He had three pairs of socks and heavy boots, double pants, long sleeved shirt, T-shirt, hoody and jacket along with three pairs of mittens, a fluffy hat and a knitted scarf. More or less, he couldn't move. The snow was high and Ivan noticed in slight amusement that he was facing quite the struggle to get through the deep snow. Finally he lifted him up instead, much to Gilbert's protest, and carried him on his shoulders for a while. Blackie skipped next to him and barked cheerfully to announce how much he enjoyed the snow. After a while, he put Gilbert down again in front of the shed and opened it with some minor struggle. Inside were all kinds of tools and amongst those, a shovel. Gilbert looked curiously at the thing.  
"Big sister wants me to shovel the way to the cars so she can get out without so much difficulty." He explained with an almost resigned smile.  
"Why don't you play with Blackie nearby while I do that?"  
Gilbert nodded in agreement to the suggestion and made his way through the snow. Ivan watched in amusement as Gilbert tried racing the dog through the thick snow and was tackled down soon again. After a few rounds of the play he noticed Katysusha looking at him from the window and sighed in defeat. All he could do was start shoveling.

It was a slow process and took longer than Ivan had anticipated. Soon fell the snow from a sky that was already darkening. His fingers were numbing a bit from the cold but it would have been worse if he hadn't been working so hard. He was finally nearing the gate now and with a sigh of victory he shoveled the last snow to the side to reveal his not so happy doormat with the sign 'BECOME ONE DA?' in faded red letters. Ivan made a mental note to replace that sometime or simply remove it during the winter. It wasn't like anyone saw the sign the anyway. He put the shovel to stand lazily in the snow to admire his work. His usual smile instantly vanished as he did. The aisle that he had produced was already getting covered in new snow but that wasn't his greatest concern. The door opened behind him but he barely reacted.  
"Vanya?" Katysusha asked worriedly. "Were's Gilbert."  
Ivan scanned the desert surroundings with a sinking heart.  
"I don't know."

"GILBERT!" Ivan yelled for what felt like the hundredth time that evening but still there was no answer. The snow was falling relentlessly upon him and erasing all chances of tracking down anything in the darkening forest. The wind was howling above him, drowning his voice and making it even harder for his voice to reach out in the night. He didn't know what time it was but he knew for sure it was nearing at least dinner. His stomach was growling in protest at being ignored and the rest of his body was complaining about the cold. Yet Ivan kept on without a stumble, intent on finding the boy before it was too late. He knew Gilbert wasn't faring well on the healing process, Matthew had informed him of that before he left, and he feared what might happen if Gilbert was left all alone to freeze in a night like this.  
"GILBERT!" he called again but as soon as the name left his lips, he knew it wouldn't be heard.  
He cursed mentally for what could have been the thousandth's time the past hour, over his stupidity and inability to keep track of a mare child and his dog. How was he going to explain to Ludwig that he might have been the cause of his brother's death. It was true he had been cruel in the past and Gilbert had been no exception but he did honestly not wish for his death.  
"GILBERT!" he coughed this time as his throat had gone painfully dry the past hours from constant yelling. It took him painfully long to regain his breath and once he got it, his vision was blurry. Even so he carried on relentlessly with one foot in front of the other. It was getting harder to move on and for each step he needed to pause and gather his strength. When had the world become so twisted and moving? He took a finall shaking step, before collapsing with a heavy thud in the cold snow.**  
**

**Dundundun! I realized I hadn't really had any cliffhangers so I decided it was about time. Also do you think I should find a name for Gilbert's stuffed chicken? Is anyone even reading the A/N? Anywho have a nice day!**


	19. Chapter 19

**So last ended in cliffhanger and here we are!**

****19 dec:  
"Blackie, I'm scared." Gilbert whimpered and clutched at the dogs collar tighter. It was dark cold and the snow was still falling from the dark sky. Blackie pressed his nose to his palm comfortingly but truth be told, he was just as scared as Gilbert was. He had no idea where he was and he was worrying of what might happen if they stayed out much longer. Who knew what was hiding in these forests? He pressed himself a little closer to Gilbert and trudged on.  
"D-do y-you think a-a-anyone w-wi-will find us?" Gilbert stuttered out through clattering teeth. He sniffled a little but forced himself to stay brave. At least there wasn't anything scary around. Just then Blackie caught onto something and growled deeply. There were sounds coming all around them such as paws crunching in the snow and a set of low growling sounds. Gilbert whimpered again. He was terrified now. Out of the shadows five wolves appeared, circling them with bared teeth. Blackie stood tensely, rotating so he was protecting Gilbert from different sides every moment. For a moment all was still save for the wind and constant growling from the wolves and Blackie. Then with a barking sound the biggest wolves lunged forward soon to be followed by the others. The first one to reach was instantly fended of by Blackie. The second lunged soon after but Gilbert managed to get out of the way so that the wolf tumbled into Blackie and his offender. By the time the third wolf was at him, Blackie had gotten himself free and lunged at the new enemy. Of course this meant that the two first attackers had time to get closer to Gilbert. Now Gilbert was surrounded by four wolves and crying heavily. Before the wolf could inflict harm, Blackie had managed to throw himself at two of them. The shock caused Gilbert to stumble back and he fell heavily in the snow. Two of the other wolves chose to go for Blackie so that he was now battling four wolves. Gilbert could see out of the corner of his eyes that it was a battle he was slowly losing. Gilbert now found himself alone in front of the leader wolf. It was slowly getting nearer and Gilbert could feel it's breath against his face. He tried to crawl back but the cold was affecting his body. He could hear Blackie's pained whines but he had yet to stop fighting. Terrified crimson eyes stared into hungry yellow ones. The mature part of Gilbert's mind vaguely wondered what it would look like to die, but then the same part of his mind told him that perhaps that wasn't a very mature part of his mind after all. Most of his body was thinking about how scared he was. He remembered how Antonio had brought his faith back. He was talking about miracles.  
"Please save me someone." he said with a tearful whimper.  
Just then a shot rang through the trees that echoed long after it was fired. The wolves tensed and the first four wolves left instantly. The wolf in front of Gilbert hesitated for a moment but as steps neared it growled one last time before bolting of into the forest. Instantly Gilbert hurried over to Blackie. He knealt down before the dog and looked him over. He was covered in scratches and bites and he was panting heavily.  
"Blackie?"  
The dog whined in protest as Gilbert petted him but made no move. The tears that had momentarily dried in relief at the wolves leaving welled up again and he choked on his sobs.  
"Blackie? W-why aren't you moving? Come one! You gotta get up! We gotta keep moving!"  
He wanted to touch the dog, but there was so much blood everywhere so he didn't dare. Blackie whined again and licked his cold hands tiredly.  
"Y-you promised Blackie! You... you promised you would protect me! I'm scared and I don't want you to go! You have to stay!"  
Gilbert was crying heavily and every sob shook his body violently. Blackie whined in exhaution again but that was all the strenght he could muster. Gilbert hickuped and threw himself forward so he was somewhat hugging his faithful friend. Blackie's breathing was getting more and more labored and his wounds painted the snow red. He burried his nose affectionately into Gilbert's embrace but couldn't bring himself to further movements. Every part of his body hurt him to the core. He wasn't scared in the least, he realized as Gilbert cried and cried and begged for him to be okay. He had protected Gilbert and he would be safe. He could smell a human nearby. He would find him and somehow bring him back to safety. Gilbert kept crying and Blackie found himself wishing he was strong enough to lick those tears away but he wasn't. Instead all he could do was whine quietly and pray that Gilbert would somehow understand that he wanted to comfort him. He wished Gilbert spoke his language so that he could explain to him that he needn't be here. He had understood Blackie's promise about protection but he surely wouldn't understand this. The past month had been hard on him and he had worried more about Gilbert then, than he had ever done in his life. How ironic that it was Blackie who would die and not Gilbert. He could feel the life draining out of his body. His heartbeats were slowing down and it was getting harder to breath. He couldn't even move anymore. He could see Berlitz and Alster before his eyes, running on a field and playing. They were calling for him. He could see his master Ludwig bathing him, scratching his belly, and talking him for walks. He could see an adult Gilbert smiling widely and tossing sticks for him to fetch. He could see this Gilbert sitting in a kitchen and trying to get him to play dead. He had known how to do it, but it was amusing to see Gilbert so concentrated. In his mind he could hear their voices, blended with music and laughter. His body might have been struggling in the cold snow but his mind was back home with the people he loved. If he concentrated he could even see the small bird sitting on top of Gilbert's head and tweeting at him. His once cold body suddenly felt all of it go away and he was in a blissful numb state. He took a last shaky breath in Gilbert's arm and then the pain was gone. Gilbert looked up in terror as he realized how calm Blackie had gotten. He wasn't breathing and his eyes had closed shut.  
"B-Blackie?" No reaction. "Blackie!" he called out in panic fat tears streaming down his cheek and sobs racking his body.  
There were footsteps coming his way. He looked around in panic and saw a cloaked man coming his way.  
"Get up." he said harshly but Gilbert shook his head.  
"I can't leave Blackie." he said shakily.  
"It's too late for him. Come with me if you don't wish to die as well!" he barked out.  
Gilbert flinched in fear and struggled to get up on his feet.  
"Don't lose sight of me." the man ordered crisply before he started walking, without checking if Gilbert was following. Terrified of being left alone, Gilbert hesitated before running after the man the best he could. He tripped several times and he was sure his foot was hurting more than it should. The shadowy man was always just as far ahead of him so that he could not make up his face but close enough so that he wouldn't get lost. The man stopped when they reached a lump on the ground. On further inspection the lump was none other than Ivan. Gilbert felt the tears come back in relief this time as he hurried over to the larger man. The other man had emerged to the shadows.  
"You'll be fine from here." he said gruffly and then he was gone.

Ivan was talking on the phone while Gilbert was wrapped in a dozens of blankets in front of the fire-place with a steeming bowl of soup fed to him by Katysusha. He was still crying most of the time even as the sun had started to rise beyond the horizon. He was getting warmer and it had turned out that he had twisted his foot a bit during the fall but other most of all he was emotionally hurt. He had tried to get some sleep since getting home but he would always wake up in tears after another nightmare with Blackie. Ivan had wanted to go out at once and find him for Gilbert but Katysusha had said that he was in no shape to go out already and look for anything. She would go out and find him herself once Gilbert was properly taken care of. Finally Ivan hung up on the phone and went over to were Gilbert sat.  
"I takled to you Bruder." he said surprisingly softly and without his usual creepy tone. "He's in Stockholm now so he'll be home in just a couple of days. He wants you to be with Denmark until then." he explained. "I agree that, that is much better for you. Do you understand?"  
Gilbert nodded mutely.  
"Good, I'll go get your stuff ready. You won't be able to leave until the blizzard has calmed though so maybe you should get some rest."  
Gilbert nodded mutely again and leaned back in the chair. He doubted he would get much sleep but at least not harm in trying. He dreamt about Blackie.

**Please don't kill me.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Finally christmas-breaK! Enjoy**

20 dec:  
Matthias looked up from his far too boring paper-work when the sound of knocking reached his ears. Thankful for the distraction he got himself up and trudged to open the door. The moment it was opened his was surprised by two arms wrapped around his waist. Already feeling tears soaking his red silk shirt, he rested a comforting arm on Gilbert's shoulder.  
"So, uh, thanks Ivan, I think I can take over."  
Ivan smiled cooly and patted Gilbert's head a little.  
"Keep him safe, da?"  
Matthias nodded and closed the door at his he went back to simply standing there while Gilbert cried his heart out. He waited calmly and whispered soothing words to his friend.  
"Any better?" Matthias asked when Gilbert had calmed down.  
"Do you ever feel down?" Gilbert asked timidly  
Matthias thought about it.  
"Well yeah of course I do. There was this one time when I pissed Norway of and he drenched me in tar before ripping a pillow above my head." he chuckled. "I was totally covered in down! And that time when I got stuck beneath my desk! Yeah I was pretty down on the floor that time as well."  
Gilbert laughed although still sadly.  
"I didn't mean it like that."  
Matthias chuckled.  
"I know. I know. "  
"But it made me feel just the slightest better." Gilbert admitted.  
Matthias flashed him a grin and then fell into a thoughtful silence.  
"Do you know whatcha need?"  
GIlbert shook his head.  
"You need a distraction. Let's head down to the mall and see if we can't find something awesome to do."  
"I usually end up lost or hurt as soon as I leave the house."  
Matthias laughed loudly.  
"Yeah I heard about your previous adventures, we'll take the car and if it gets too crowded I'll carry you instead. Wanna go?"  
Gilbert nodded.  
"Let's go!"

The mall was nicely decorated and with a lot of people. Matthias dealt with the crowd the way he had promised and carried Gilbert in his arms so the boy could awe at the beauty. A large tree stood in the centre decorated with shining red Christmas-balls, golden glitter and electric candles. At the top of it all was a large golden star and at the bottom was shiny packages with silk ribbons. Ahead of them was a line of children waiting for something. All of the sudden, there was a young preppy woman walking towards them, dressed in green and red tights, a short dress and some strange hat. She shot them a  
fake smile and stopped in front of them.  
"Hello sir." she said with and overly sweet voice.  
"Hiyah!" Matthias replied with a crooked smile. "Can I help yah?"  
The sickening sweet smile intensed.  
"I was just wondering if perhaps your adorable brother would like to go see Santa."  
Matthias flashed her a much more honest smile before turning to Gilbert.  
"Whacha saying? Wanna see santa?"  
Gilbert tilted his head to the side and looked between Matthias and the girl.  
"Why would I want that? Santa isn't real."  
The girl blinked but the sweet smile soon returned.  
"Of course he is! Who else do you think it is that brings all the gifts at Christmas eve?"  
Gilbert was silent for a moment but smiled innocently.  
"That's cousin Berwald's boyfriend Tino who sneaks into our house and leaves Bruder a stack of porn."  
The girl's smile faded and she was completely silent. Matthias would have laughed out loud but his mind had processed enough not to. As far as she knew, he was that brother who got porn for Christmas. He laughed awkwardly.  
"My do yah have an imagination. I have know idea where he get's it all from. Let's head home shall we?"  
The girl looked at them in sceptism as Matthias nodded a quick goodbye and hurried away. As soon as they were far enough for her not to hear them Matthias and Gilbert both broke out in laughter.  
"Did you see her face?" Matthias wheezed out. "It was priceless!"  
Gilbert giggled.  
"I wonder how she'd reacted if I mentioned Berwald's present."  
Matthias who had almost calmed down broke into another fit of laughter.  
"Oh my god I would have paid to see that!"  
Some people walking by looked their way at the noise but all they saw was two brothers who was having a good time. When they finally calmed down, Gilbert wrapped his arms around Matthias' neck and buried his head into his shoulder.  
"Thank you for making me fell better."  
Matthias' smiled softened and he hugged back.  
"Anything for my buddy."

"Something is burning." Gilbert commented later that evening.  
Matthias who had been sitting with paperwork at the kitchen table instantly shot up at the news and ran to the pot that was working on the pot. He stirred the content while muttering various Scandinavian curses while Gilbert watched him curiously. He had been watching TV in the living-room and minding his own business while Matthias had announced that he was going to make food. With a final curse Matthias poured the 'food' into two bowls and placed it on the table.  
"Come one and eat buddy."  
Gilbert looked at the bowl with wrinkled nose for a moment contemplating if he was really supposed to eat this.  
"What is this?" he finally asked, only to have Matthias smile cheepishly at him.  
"Well, I usually don't cook food for myself so it might not be the best. It's supposed to be soup."  
Gilbert dipped his spoon in the 'soup' and allowed it to flow of the spoon again. He made a disgusted face.  
"Are you sure?"  
Matthias took a sip of his own soup and made a gagging noise. He took both the plates and the pot and dumbed in the sink. With a tired sigh he grabbed his jacket and threw Gilbert's to him.  
"Let's just go to McDonalds."

"So uh, where do yah wanna sleep?"  
Gilbert was already dressed in his PJ's and clutching the huge stuffed chicken to his chest. The sky was dark and even Matthias could feel the energy drain from his body. Gilbert didn't answer. He simply stood there with wide eyes. Matthis scratched the back of his neck.  
"Do you wanna sleep in my bed?"  
Gilbert smiled and reached out his arms towards Matthias. The later sighed and scooped the former into his arms.  
"I take that as a yes then."  
Once they had entered the red painted room, Matthias dropped Gilbert onto the soft bed as to which he squeeled in delight. Matthias pulled of his shirt and changed into sweat-pants. He paused a second. He had since long given up on wearing a shirt when sleeping, but could he really go into bed barechested with a child? He finally decided and pulled out a T-shirt from a drawer before getting under the covers. He allowed himself to sink into one of his soft pillows and closed his eyes tiredly. Then there was a finger pointing at his cheek.  
"I'm not tired." Gilbert said.  
Matthias groaned no-one had told him kids were this hard to please.


	21. Chapter 21

**21 of december and I'm still here!**

****21 dec:

The first thing Matthias noted when he woke up, was that there was foot pressed into his face. When had it gotten there? I forced his eyes opened and managed to trace down the foot to its owner. Gilbert slept calmly next to him, although sprawled all over the bed. He groaned sleepily but forced himself to get up anyway. He needed to get up and prepare breakfast for his friend. He caught notice of the pile of work waiting at his office but like the responsible adult that he was, he chose to ignore it. His new task was cooking breakfast.

Gilbert's head shot up instantly when he realized his foot wasn't resting on a head anymore. Not much later he could smell something from the kitchen. With racing heart, he hurried downstairs. During his new childhood he had been fortunate to avoid anything disgusting. All had been fairly good cooks apart from Arthur and he had managed to avoid his food both days. Now he had a sinking feeling in his stomach that his luck would end here. To confirm his worries, Matthias stood by a pot in the kitchen and stirring slowly. The food didn't smell burnt yet but it didn't smell good either. It smell a little like cardboard in his opinion. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. There was no way he was going to eat this. There were strawberry-jam, applesauce, sugar and milk placed on the table. Maybe if he hurried he could eat that instead of the nightmare on the stove. He hurried over to the table and reached for the jam only to be chocked when a bowl was placed before him. He had been too late. Matthias grinned at him. Gilbert just stared at the food with a creast-fallen expression. Not only did it smell like cardboard, I looked like it too. Well more a piece of cardboard who had been left in the rain and ran over by a truck ten times. Matthias was already covering his cardboard with applesauce and sugar before pouring some milk into it all.  
"Perhaps you should try it before you reject it." Matthias suggested with an amused smile although Gilbert couldn't for his life figure out what was so funny about eating cardboard. He shook his head with a pout.  
"You danish are crazy." he concluded but Matthias only laughed.  
"What? For eating breakfast?"  
"No for eating cardboard for breakfast."  
Matthias smiled faded to a dumb expression before laughed loudly. He reached over and ruffled Gilbert's hair.  
"It's not cardboard, it's oatmeal. Don't tell me you've never had oatmeal."  
Gilbert sent him a huge pout to which Matthias only laughed. He reached over and grabbed Gilbert's spoon.  
"Try some before you reject it." he repeated before inching the spoon closer to Gilbert.  
"I can feed myself." the boy whined while trying to get away from the doom.  
Matthias winked at him teasingly.  
"Yeah but you don't so I'll do it. Open up."  
Gilbert shook his head furiously and pressed his lips firmly together in protest.  
"Here comes to cho-cho train." Matthias singsonged while trying to pry Gilbert's lips open. Gilbert glared at him some more and tried to move out of the chair but Matthias was annoyingly quick. Seeing as Gilbert was more or less falling out of the chair he reached out to steady him and force the spoon into Gilbert's mouth when he opened his eyes in surprise. Once Gilbert was steady he pulled out the spoon and grinned at the boy. Gilbert made a very sour face as he was forced to swallow the substance.  
"It tastes like cardboard." he said with a pout.  
Matthias laughed and reached for the jam and sugar.  
"It tastes better with something sweet, try again." Gilbert shook his head instantly.  
Matthias shook his head as well, but in a more amused fashion.  
"May the battle begin."

The kitchen looked like hell and Matthias' clean shirt looked like someone had thrown up on him, but around 11 or so, Gilbert's plate was empty and most of the content was in Gilbert's stomach. Matthias shot the sour boy a victory-grin.  
"I'm the king of Scandinavia for a reason."  
Gilbert only glared at him.  
"That was disgusting." he muttered and to his annoyance Matthias only laughed.  
He was used to his friend being cheerful but did he never get angry. He had more or less destroyed his kitchen for gods sake! Why was he still laughing?  
"I might not taste the best but it's a good start of the day."  
"Not for me." Gilbert muttered.  
Suddenly he was scooped up in Matthias' arms and carried out of the kitchen.  
"Hate to break your very happy mood, but you need a bath I think."  
Gilbert instantly started to struggle and claw at Matthias wherever he could reach. Yet he couldn't get free and Matthias was still in a good mood. Somehow Matthias managed to keep Gilbert in one arm while running the water with the other. And soon Gilbert was placed in the water with a constant scowl on his face. Matthias poked his forehead.  
"CarefMastul now Gil, if you keep that on you'll start to look like Arthur."  
The scowl only deepened of course. The bathing was done in silence as Gilbert kept sulking and Matthias kept smiling.  
"You're stupid." Gilbert finally muttered.  
Matthias just shot him a loopsided grin.  
"I know. Lukas tells me all the time. Why do you think I'm stupid?"  
"Because you are."  
As expected Matthias only laughed softly.  
"Because I am? We can save a lot of time if you just tell me what's wrong."  
Gilbert pouted.  
"Why aren't you mad?" he finally asked.  
"You mean about the kitchen?"  
Gilbert surprisingly shook his head.  
"I mean about everything. Why don't you hate me?"  
"Well first of I can't even count all the drinks you've paid for me, and for that I am grateful. Also," he said a little bit more softly. "You've done nothing wrong."  
Gilbert splashed some of the water in the tub so it hit Matthias but he was still calm.  
"But I just ruined your kitchen! And what about the invasion of Denmark? And..."  
He was cut of by a large hand to his mouth.  
"First of all, the kitchen thing is just hilarious and I can't wait to see my housekeepers reaction when she gets here later today. Secondly it wasn't your fault. Your boss made the decision and Ludwig tortured me, simple as that."  
Gilbert's face had gone from sour to extremely upset. Matthias sighed and reached for a large red towel. He wrapped Gilbert up with it and carried him back to his room.  
"Do you hate Bruder then?" Gilbert asked.  
"Nope not one bit. He's a stick in the mud and takes the fun out of meetings, but I don't hate him."  
He threw some clean clothes at Gilbert and pulled of the T-Shirt with a slightly wrinkled nose.  
"You sure knows how to fight a battle, I'm not sure if this can ever be used again." With a shrug he tossed it across the room so it landed perfectly in the laundry-basket. He whooped in victory and dug for another T-Shirt. He stopped at a certain one.  
"Do you know how we're spending the rest of the day?" he asked with a smile.  
Gilbert shook his head. With a crazy smile Matthias turned the T-Shirt so Gilbert could see the Lord of The Rings logo.  
"We're having a marathon."

They somehow managed to watch through all three movies with extended edition but it was way passed midnight. They had only stopped for about an hour or so as Matthias housekeeper yelled at him for being so irresponsible and allowing a mare child to watch such horrible and immoral movies. And so to please her they had watched an hour of Little Mermaid while the woman cleaned the house. After that they were back on track again. Gilbert was now currently asleep next to Matthias with pizza-boxes, bags and bottles littered around them. Matthias watched with heavy eye-lids as the ship sailed away at the horizon and then how Sam walked home to his family. As the credits rolled in he nudged Gilbert side with his elbow.  
"Huh?" Gilbert mumbled sleepily.  
"You gotta be awake in order to brush your teeth. It's time for bed."  
Gilbert yawned widely.  
"But I'm not tired." Gilbert protested although he had been asleep only seconds before.  
"Well I am so your going down with me."  
At that moment there was the sound of a car-door slamming shut followed by tired muttering. There was a knock on the door. Ludwig was finally home.


	22. Chapter 22

**Lookie here! I'm posting almost 2 hours before midnight!**

22 dec: Not counted the wars, this month had been the most mentally challenging month in all of Ludwig's life. First it was the overall concern about him not being able to look after his brother when he needed him, but then he had gotten stuck in Finland and had to rely on Austria to find a safe place for him to stay. Then he was sure, Tino had given him the wrong directions because no matter how long he drove he was not even close to civilization. At long last he had reached Stockholm, only to be caught in a blizzard and forced to stay inside a crowded gym. It didn't help that he was worrying himself sick by the news that Gilbert was going to Vash, the nation who always carried guns. The time in Stockholm hadn't been exactly pleasant but he managed to get out of there two days later. Only to have his car stolen by some punks. Thinking his bad luck would end there, he thanked Berwald for driving from Stockholm to there and lend him his car so he could continue. Two days later, the car broke down and he was stuck somewhere called Mjölby. During that time he was told that Gilbert was safe but he was going to France. That didn't do much to relieve his stress. Following days was nothing short of stress and torture. Not only had he managed to misread Berwald's directions and ended up in Karlstad, but the news about Gilbert had been to say the least unsettling. According to what Ludwig could gather, he had almost been raped, he was in some sort of explosion, he had more or less been kidnapped or something in London, he had a very infected hand that had been hurt somehow and his hand might never be restored, he'd almost died somehow at Mathew's house, he'd been bullied by some homophobic bastards and finally he had been kidnapped by Russia. The rational part would have told Ludwig that he was probably overreacting about most of this but his brain was far away from rational. The worst of the month had been these past four days. He had gotten a call from Katysusha only to hear that Gilbert and Blackie was lost in a blizzard and was nowhere to be found. He hadn't managed to sleep that night and ended up driving instead. The next night's phonecall, he was fortunately at Berwald's house again. He felt absolutely horrible when he heard Ivan's grave tone on the other line. At first he had feared the worst. That Gilbert had died out there and they had yet to find his frozen body. The news as it was had broken him to the core anyway and he had for once cried openly, both in relief and utmost sorrow. He left Berwalds house the following morning and he had been driving none-stop ever since. He couldn't describe the feeling of relief as he parked in front of the Dane's house and saw that the light was still on. He knocked heavily on the door and waited until the door opened. And there stood Gilbert, with a fading scar on his palm, ruffled white hair and a wide smile on his face. Despite his exhausted mind Ludwig still forced himself to move and pull Gilbert into a bone-crushing hug. Gilbert hugged him back tightly and for a long while they simply stood there, not much different to how Gilbert had hugged Matthias only yesterday. Matthias smiled fondly and left them be. Hopefully they'd find his guestroom without help.

Ludwig fell asleep on the couch with Gilbert resting on top of him. They slept well past noon from the exhaustion of driving from Stockholm to Kopenhagen and from watching more or less 13 hours of movie (some of that was bonus-features and little mermaid). Matthias allowed them to sleep and finally put some focus on his paperwork. Around noon he finally gave up and headed for the kitchen. He could at least surprise them with brunch.

Gilbert blinked his eyes open and yawned widely. He found himself in Ludwig's still persistent hug. He was glad to be back with his Bruder. But then as his mind became clearer he noticed a unsettling smell coming from the kitchen. A smell very similar to cardboard. He was out of the cough in seconds and running towards the kitchen.  
"Save the food!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, causing Ludwig to tumble out of the couch in shock. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and got himself up off the floor. There was yelling from the kitchen. When he entered the room he found Matthias standing in the kitchen and clutching a spoon in his hands. Gilbert was sitting on his shoulders and trying his best to get the spoon himself.  
"You can't cook!" he yelled. "Let Bruder do it!"  
"Not a chance. I'm awesome at cooking breakfast!"  
"I'm not eating cardboard again!" Gilbert yelled and tugged repeatedly at the spoon.  
"It's oatmeal! Perfectly healthy."  
"It's nothing healthy about poison!" GIlbert protested.  
"I'm the king of the north! I won't let you win this battle!"  
"You don't have a choice. I won't let you serve that THING!"  
"You're like barely a meter, or something how much damage do you think you can do to me?"  
"My awesomeness will blind you!"  
"Oh yeah..."  
While the two fought, Ludwig creapt over to the pot. He wrinkled his nose. Well it sure looked and smelled like cardboard. He had eaten oatmeal before and he had sworn never to be that desperate again. Making sure Matthias and Gilbert wasn't looking he removed the pot and started to dump the content in the trash-can. No way in hell was he eating that thing.  
"Hey don't throw away the food!"  
Matthias had noticed him. Sudenly the Dane was attacking him with the spoon. Grabbing the first weapon at choice he blocked the blow with a whisk that lay on the counter. Soon there was an epic fencing-scene going on in the kitchen with Gilbert still on Matthias' shoulders  
"Get him! Don't let me eat his yucky card-boards!" Gilbert yelled.  
Figuring that was a decent enough motive for his tired mind he advanced towards the spoon and almost managed to knock it out of his opponent's hand. Matthias smirked.  
"You think you can measure my power? Bring it on."  
The battle continued and soon Ludwig was standing on the table while the jam, sauce, sugar and milk had been knocked to the floor. The oatmeal was long since forgotten. His place on the table made it harder for Ludwig to attack as he needed to be careful not to accidentally hit Gilbert in the head. He advanced carefully now and blocked each blow with perfection that would have made the former Gilbert proud. He was the one teaching him how to fence after all.  
"What on earth is going on here!" and elderly woman's voice exclaimed.  
Matthias turned around to find his housekeeper standing there with her hands on her hips.  
"Hi Mrs. Erikssen. totally nice on you to come."  
"You have one minute to explain yourself Mr. Kohler." she said cooly.  
Matthias grinned sheepishly and placed Gilbert down on the ground. Sensing the embarrasing moment, Ludwig slowly stepped down from the table.  
"To make a long story short, Gilbert didn't want to have oatmeal for breakfast."  
Mrs Erikssen glared at the Dane.  
"Sometimes it's like I'm working for a child, how can you just..."  
And so started another lenghty lecture from the scary housekeeper. Ludwig leaned closer to Gilbert and whispered.  
"Go back your things. We might be able to sneak away before she notices us."  
Gilbert nodded but the moment he moved Mrs. Erikssen turned her sharp gaze to them.  
"Not so fast young man, I'll get to you two later."  
Gilbert backed instantly and pressed to Ludwig's side. Suddenly Ludwig was very grateful for growing up without a mother.****


	23. Chapter 23

**Sorry it's short.**

Dec 23:  
Ludwig welcomed the love and attention he received from Alster and Berlitz with open arms and petted them lovingly. It was a bittersweet moment as the two dogs sniffed around and obviously wondered where their 'brother' had run of to. Ludwig just kept petting them with a sad smile while talking to his neighbor Frau Müller.  
"Thank you for looking after them." He said gratefully although tiredly.  
The woman smiled.  
"Nothing to worry about dearest. They've been a delight to have as company."  
"Well I'm not too surprised they tend to be loved by most of the world."  
Frau Müller nodded in agreement. The two talked for a while longer before Ludwig decided it was best to leave and check on the still sleeping Gilbert before things went wrong. Just as he was about to leave Frau Müller called out.  
"Oh and how is you brother and Blackie doing, are they back from their trip yet?"  
Ludwig froze in his tracks and could already feel the tightening of his throat. He swallowed thickly and forced a smile on his face as he turned.  
"N-nein." he lied. " They decided to celebrate their Christmas with a friend in R-Russia."  
"Oh what a pity it's been so empty on the street without you boys and your dogs."  
"Yes it's a pity, I have to go now." Ludwig said quickly.

The moment he and the two dogs were inside the house he sunk down to the floor with his back to the door and allowed the tears to fall again. He cursed inwardly for being so vulnerable. He was supposed to be a strong nation that wasn't affected by something as trivial as death. He was a nation for god's sake and he should be used to it. But this was his faithful follower all the way back to the Wars who had supported him through many harsh nights when bombs were falling and people were hurting. Sensing the mood of their master Alster snuck up to check on Gilbert while Berlitz settled on licking at Ludwigs face in a comforting manner. Ludwig only responded by hugging him tightly. It didn't matter what people claimed, he had been blessed by three very clever and brave dogs.  
"Bruder?" Ludwig looked up instantly to find a perfectly awake Gilbert at the stairs. He quickly wiped away the last tears and got up.  
"We need to decorate the house, Bruder. Christmas is tomorrow and we still don't have any tree or presents. And we need food as well."  
"I don't need a tree or presents. I've learned now that as long as I'm with family those are unimportant."  
Ludwig looked at the boy almost mournfully.  
"I can't believe I missed you growing up." he murmured.  
Gilbert smiled sweetly and ran over to hug him.  
"It's alright! It wasn't that exciting really."  
Ludwig couldn't help but scoff.  
"Really becuase as I heard it, you were in quite a lot of trouble while I was travelling all of Scandinavia."  
Gilbert grinned innocently.  
"Does it help if I tell you that I knew all along how to get down from the tree?"  
Ludwig raised an eyebrow, that was new information.  
"You climbed a tree?"  
Feeling a little like he had done as a child and preparing himself for a lecture by Vati he scuffled his feet a little and looked anywhere but Ludwig.  
"Well uh, like I said, I knew how to get down. Lilly just wanted to prove that Vash cared enough to do it for me."  
Ludwig rubbed his temples tiredly. In a way he was glad these news had escaped his knowledge as it would have brought him even more stress than he already had at the moment.  
"You realize you will get me sick one day from worrying me so much?" he asked with a hint of amusement in his voice, telling Gilbert that he was in no real trouble.  
Gilbert grinned broadly.  
"Then I'll make sure to grow up real fast so you won't ever have to worry about me again!"  
Suddenly Gilbert was scooped up so he was sitting on a small table in the hallway and in eyelevel of Ludwig.  
"Mark my words when I'm telling you this, mein Bruder." he said slowly with a hand on each of Gilbert's shoulders. "It doesn't matter how tall, strong or old you are. I will always worry about you."  
Gilbert tilted his head to the side in a cute manner.  
"Why? I can take care of myself."  
Ludwig closed his eyes for a moment as if collecting his thoughts.  
"Do you remember when I was young and the other kids bullied me for living with a single man."  
Gilbert nodded with a cute frown.  
"Yeah but you didn't tell me for month and I didn't found out until I stalked you up and saw it with my own eyes. I was really worried around that time cause I knew something was wrong but you wouldn't tell me. You just bottled everything up but you were really too young to shoulder such emotions by yourself and you should have come to me so I could help you." he said.  
Ludwig nodded.  
"That's what I'm going through right now. You changed after the War, I know you did. Although you acted like the same old guy it was clear that not all was right. Just like I didn't want to tell you about my problems which caused me to worry, you rarely ever tell me about your problems. That's why I'm always worried about you. I know something is bothering you and I worry that you might do something reckless and hurt yourself or leave alone from a bar while drunk when it's snowing. And I found a knife in the kitchen stained in blood and what was I supposed to think?" Ludwig was tearing up again and he clutched tightly and Gilbert's shoulder. "I'm not a very liked nation, Gilbert. Most people fear me and I rarely get to see Italy and Japan what with all the economy and such. You are the only one I know I can depend on no matter the cause and I don't want to lose you. I couldn't take that. That's why I worry even if your an adult, do you get it?"  
Gilbert nodded with tearful eyes and threw his arms around Ludwig.  
"I won't leave you I promise." he said through the sobs and Ludwig hugged back tightly.  
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."  
For now things were fine. They could probably buy a tree tomorrow.


	24. Chapter 24

**Merry Christmas dudes! Oh yeah most of the world celebrate tomorrow but we do it today (24th) since we're that unique and stuff. I know it's like only morning and I usually post in the evening but I'll be pretty bussy for most of the day so this will be it. There will be a last chapter tomorrow as well if I'm feeling up to it. Enjoy!**

"Ve! Buon Natale!" Said a cheerful Italian voice followed by some grumbling and some polite Japanese fraces. It was already darkening outside and somehow the German duo had gotten the house really cozy in time for for Ludwigs three guests to arrive. Gilbert peeked shyly out from a corner and instantly his smile widened.  
"Toni!" he yelled at the top of his lungs and lunged himself at the man who had stood quietly so far. Antonio smiled brightly as well and caught him in a hug with ease.  
"Mio Bambino! Oh how I've missed you!" He spun the child around a little and ended with a wet kiss to the cheek for good measurement. Gilbert instantly gagged and started rub the kiss away to which both Ludwig and Antonio laughed. Kiku stood there a little baffled but kept his calm demeanour. He coughed awkwardly and spoke before Lovino could say something offensive.  
"Forgive my rudeness, but I do not think I have met this child."  
Ludwig rubbed his eyes in a tired gesture.  
"It's kind of a long story."

The same story was interrupted by someone ringing on the door. Frowning a little as Ludwig was not expecting any more people he got up to open, with Gilbert soon behind.  
"Zup dude! Happy Xmas!"  
America?  
"Bloody Hell Alfred, it's Christmas and stop acting like such an idiot!".Said a very pissed Brit next to him while the two french nations stayed behind in silence. "Sorry he tagged along and I couldn't get rid of him." Arthur said turned to Ludwig with an eyeroll and ignored Alfred's childish complaints. " We just came over to look in on Gilbert."  
Ludwig nodded but he needn't call for his brother because said brother was already lunging himself into a tight hug from Francis.  
"Mon diue, I knew I should have kept you in France." He muttered while stroking Gilbert's hair.  
"See papa? I told you, he's alive." Matthew said but no one but Gilbert seemed to notice. He smiled brightly at him and would have hugged him had it not been for Francis preventing him to do so.  
"Dude, it's freaking cold here, yah think you can let us in?"  
Ludwig was about to say no but that went against all manners he knew and Gilbert was staring at him.  
"Ja of course come on in." he said only to rewarded by a very happy smile from Gilbert.

Ding Dong!  
Ludwig resisted the urge to groan in annoyance and got up.  
"Freue Weinacht!"  
On the door step stood none other than Roderich, Elizaveta, Lilly and Vash.  
"Freue Weinach to you too, I thought you were going to spend your Christmas in Austria."  
Lilly smiled shyly.  
"I convinced big brother to take us here instead so that we could visit Gilbert."  
Once again Gilbert was looking pleadingly at him from the doorway and Ludwig heaved an almost annoyed sigh.  
"The more the merrier."

The night was in all a success. During the night, they received a phone-call both from Ivan although it was short and Ludwig was glad to hang up and Matthias. Since there wasn't enough food planned everyone pitched in on what they knew while keeping Arthur away from the stove. This was a task managed solely by an far too eager American and a bratty Prussian. Roderich managed to convince Gilbert into playing and the two played a lovely duet that got some of the weakers emotional. While Roderich played solo Lilly danced around the room with Gilbert while the other's cheered them on. When hours were getting late, Matthew brought in pancakes and syrup but not much later, Gilbert was very much asleep between Antonio and Francis. That is until there was a heavy thud sounding from the roof. With his soldier instincts, Gilbert looked up at the cieling with a slight frown and not much later there were sounds coming from the chimney. The lit fire was put down and a pair of boots landed in the soot.  
"Moi Moi!" TIno said cheerfully as he stepped out with a sack in his hand.  
He was met by happy smiles mixed with surprise.  
"I'm not supposed to be here until you go to bed but I'm making an exception today!". Tino said while dusting of the soot of his legs. No one was talking as Tino blabbered on about everything and nothing. When he finally was done, everyone was waiting. Tino now sat down in a chair and stared directly at Gilbert.  
"I've known for many years what you wanted for Christmas but I couldn't give it to you."  
Gilbert pouted a little.  
"Why not?"  
"Because such magic requires Christmas faith, something that you lack."  
While the two were talking it was as if no one else was in the room. It was just the two of them. Gilbert looked creastfallen.  
"Oh."  
"But perhaps you have been given some Christmas-faith now." Tino said with a cryptic smile. "From being turned into a child, that is. It's not always easy to be a child is it? You face disappointments, fears and rejection but we also face love, caring and worry. "  
"You did this, didn't you?" Gilbert asked.  
"Perhaps, perhaps not. I mean the signs are there such as how I found you, Arthur's spell turned the entire basement into a winter wonder land and the fact that the curse came on the first of December and 24 days until Christmas. Which is enough time to be given Christmas-faith. I mean it wouldn't be hard for me to cancel some flights, give the wrong directions to Ludwig, follow him to Eskilstuna and steal back my car, get Berwald to give him a lousy car and the wrong directions. Of course I couldn't have forseen a blizzard striking at the right moment, I'm not a god." Tino was blabbering now but this time everyone put effort in cathing every word. "But all together I would have managed to keep Ludwig away long enough for you to travel across the world, have a childhood, restore you Christmas faith, and most importantly it was a perfect opportunity for you to sort out your problems with people."  
Ludwig heaved a sigh in annoyance.  
"So in other words, you were the one to turn Gilbert into a child."  
Tino just ignored him and looked at Gilbert.  
"So tell me little warrior. Is your faith restored?"  
Gilbert bit his lip.  
Christmas is about being with the ones you love.  
He thought back to the past month. The fun he had had with Roderich and feeling the security of him protecting him. The motherly tenderness coming from Elizaveta. The worry he had felt from Vash although he came out harsh, as well a the obvious adoration from Lilly. The love and companionship he felt even stronger with both Francis' and Antonio. The mutual understanding that had developed between Gilbert and Arthur and the protection the later had provided. The guidance and nourishing he had experienced while staying with Matthew and he had tended to his wounded hand. He thought back to Russia. Most of his two days had been spent crying but Ivan had proved to him that he meant no harm and that he would protect him if he thoughts trailed back to Matthias and the fun the two had had together. He had proven that deeds could be forgiven easily if you just allowed yourself to forget and move on. In the same way, Roderich, Elizaveta, Arthur and Vash had all proved that they didn't hate him. Lilly had proved that there was more to people than what met the eyes and Matthew, Francis and Antonio proved that there was more to life than just being gone and those we love stay with us even though we can not see them. They guard us and guide us though the hardships of being a human. He thought of Blackie. He had died while protecting him and he was still around to do so.

He hadn't realized he was crying but when he did he instantly wiped them away and nodded.  
"I have my Christmas faith." he said shakily.  
"Good, then come with me." Tino said while getting up. He took Gilbert by the hand and led him to the backyard.  
"Close your eyes and think about your wish." he whispered. Gilbert did as told while snow fell upon his head.  
"You can open them."  
Gilbert did so and there stood none other than Fritz. He was smiling gently but with pride shining in his eyes. The tears from earlier welled up again and Gilbert sprung to hug the other. Fritz welcomed the hug and enveloped him into his embrace.  
"I always wondered what you looked like as a child, turn out you very horribly cute."  
Gilbert didn't answer to that one he just allowed Fritz to play with his hair.  
"I can not begin to tell you how proud I am to have been your king." Fritz began softly.  
"Why? I lost my entire empire." Gilbert sniffled.  
"But that wasn't your fault. That was the fault of my useless nephew and his descendants, you had nothing to do with that. Also I thought you'd have learned something important this month. That it's not the size that matters." he chuckled softly. "It doesn't matter to me if your a nation or mortal or something in between. I've been watching you every day since I passed and aside from some minor faults you have done nothing to put me to shame. You are the most amazing boy I will ever have the pleasure of meeting."  
"I miss you." Gilbert said through the tears.  
Fritz smiled sadly.  
"I miss you too. But remember, I'm always there somehow and you won't be going anywhere soon if I have something to say about it."  
There was a cough behind them.  
"I'm sorry I can't give you more time than this but Fritz needs to go back to his side."  
Gilbert seemed to want to protest but instead he just sighed miserably.  
Fritz pressed a kiss to Gilbert's soft hair.  
"It won't be forever." whispered.  
He was already starting to fade.  
"I'm always here Mein Preusen."  
Gilbert sniffled and allowed himself to hug Fritz as long as possible.  
"Danke mein König." he whispered. "Ich libe dich."

**I know I said no pairings but this is different. I mean they're obviously meant for each other but I don't doubt that he moved on and found a new love later on. Should I write a last chapter?**


	25. Chapter 25 Thank You and Goodbye

**Last chapter finally here. Thank you to all those who have been reading it has really lightened my mood to wake up and find new reviews. I am forever grateful to all of you. **

25 dec:  
Gilbert woke up by something sharp poking his cheek repeatedly. It didn't really hurt but it was extremely annoying to the albino who wished for nothing but sleep. He tried to swat whaterver it was away with his hand but it instantly left only to return seconds later. Groaning in defeat he opened his eyes groggily. Just at the corner of his eyes he spotted a bleary ball of yellow feathers that kept poking him with his beak. He smiled tiredly and reached out to stroke it.  
"Hey Birdie. Where have you been?"  
The bird only nestled into his palm in response and tweeked in content. Gilbert laughed a little.  
"Yeah I missed you too."  
Gilbird chirped.  
"Yeah you have no idea what I've been through this month.  
They lay there with Gilbert telling his faithful pet about his adventures until Gilbird had decided enough was enough and actually bit his palm. Gilbert winced a little.  
"You think I've been sleeping too along again, don't you."  
Gilbird tweeked in reply and swirled around his head.  
Gilbert laughed again and forced himself up. It turned out he had been sleeping in own bed in the basement this night, something he had rarely done the past month. He ran a hand through his hair and smelling food from the kitchen he wondered upwards. He didn't stop until he reached the full body mirror next to his door. He shot the reflection a loop-sided grin and studied himself carefully. His body was yet again tainted in battle-scars, his muscles although not as great as Ludwig's (curtesy of loosing his status as a nation) had increased and his face looked sharper and more defined.  
"Looks like the spell broke eh Birdie?" he asked and Gilbert chirped.

Ludwig was in the kitchen as predicted simply heating left-overs from yesterday to eat. His eyebrows shot up in surprise when Gilbert trudged in but smiled warmly.  
"I suddenly understand what they mean when they say that children grow up quickly." he said dryly and all Gilbert could really do was grin back.  
"What's for breakfast?" he asked while slumping down on a chair with Gilbird on his head.  
"Oatmeal." Ludwig responded with a smirk that Gilbert couldn't see. Gilbert made a disgusted face.  
"One time is one too many, I think I prefer starving."  
Ludwig chuckled.  
"It's leftover from last night but what joy would I get out of saying that?"  
Gilbert smirked.  
"And people think you're a good guy. You're just as cruel as I am."  
A plate of meatballs, wurst and other dishes was placed before him and Gilbert dug in happily.  
"You've been a great deal of trouble the past few weeks and I think I deserved some kind of revenge."  
Gilbert raised his glass of juice.  
"I rest my case."  
The two ate in silence for most of the meal apart from small-talk about what came to mind and neither could deny that it was relaxing. As the day moved on, Gilbert headed back downstairs to catch up on his training while Ludwig sat himself down in his office to catch up on his paper-work.  
Meanwhile Berlitz and Alster paced the living-room restlessly. They could both feel something going on around the house and the rest of their area but could not define what it was. Suddenly they caught up on the scent they had been searching for and ran up to the window barking loudly so they could get their masters there.

Up in his office Ludwig set to calling their friends and family to tell them the news about Gilbert. Antonio and Francis had been thrilled by the news and asked him to finish these calls quickly so they could call and make plans with Gilbert and head down to the bar. Vash had finished their call stiffly but wished for him to send his regards, Elizaveta had been happy and send her love as well along with Matthew who had promised to send something for the Prussian soon. Matthias had promised a close by visit as soon as he had time. Arthur had hung up after grouchy, I'm busy, followed by another voice in the background asking him to get back to bed. Roderich had smiled on the other side and had announced that he would write a song for flutes as celebration. Lastly he called his boss to clear out why he had been missing for an entire month and ignored all calls. They were almost done with that call when the dogs starting barking in the living-room. He tried to ignore it for a while and prayed Gilbert could deal with it but then Gilbert's voice rang through the house.  
"Bruder you've got to come and see this!"  
Hearing the shake in his brother's voice he quickly hung up on his angry boss and hurried downstairs. The dogs and Gilbert stood by the window. His eyes widened when he saw what they were looking at.  
"It can't be."

To be honest it felt good to finally train his body a little bit. Even though he wasn't a nation anymore the old habits he had gotten during his times of battle had rubbed in on him and gotten him to work out daily to keep his body in check. Also since he wasn't exactly immortal anymore it was always important to take care of your health. Gilbird was flying a few inches away from his face mocking him and spurring him to keep going. He'd missed this. The training was abruptly interrupted when Berlitz and Alster started barking loudly from the upstairs. Knowing Ludwig had some serious paper-work to catch up on he figured he could do him a favor a check what was up. He pulled on his new favorite hoody, that somehow still fitted like a glove and headed up with Gilbird. The dogs were barking at the window with wagging tails. He went over to tell them to be quiet but his entire body froze when he saw what they were barking at. Not entirerly trusting his senses he called out for Ludwig shakily.  
"Bruder, you've got to come and see this!"  
Ludwig was down only seconds before and stared in disbelief.  
"It can't be." he whispered.  
There in the snow sat a black and brown German Sheppard with wagging tale. Around his neck hung an iron-cross. The two stood frozen for a moment before Gilbert came back to life. Not caring about his bare feet he rushed outside and embraced the dog. Ludwig was soon behind him with Berlitz and Alster. Gilbert allowed himself to cry again but for once it was nothing more than tears of pure joy. Blackie licked wherever he could reach in his master's grip trying to show his happiness and comfort the other. Soon Ludwig was scratching and petting him affectionately. Ludwig was still not sure it could have been Blackie but the cross was a unique detail to his dogs. His fingers eventually brushed against a piece of paper. He untied it from Blackie's necklace and found it adressed to Gilbert. He handed it to his brother who wiped his tears and opened the seal. Meanwhile Bertlitz and Alster had a moment to reunite with his 'brother'. Gilbert read the letter.

_Dear Gilbert._

_I can not believe how much you've grown and matured. You've been faced with hard decisions and have been forced to see things no one of your age should ever have experienced. You manage to raise a brilliant boy and turn him into a mature young man. Had this been a few hundred years prior I would never have imagined that you would turn out this well. You have showed me courage, justice, kindness and love. I've heard you say in your drunken state how disappointed I must be in you I must be. Never will I ever feel that way my boy. It's true that you have done mistakes in life but I love you far too much to let them affect me. Don't ever think otherwise. I can honestly not begin to tell you how proud of you I am. The other's may be able to brag about their boy's being able to cook or performing magic, but I can brag about you and your amazing ability to be you. Don't doubt yourself so much for I know for a fact that this world would be nothing if you didn't make it so interesting at the meetings. Your sense of humor and bright smile lightens the room and your warm heart makes wonder for most people. I regret that I left you at such a young age and forced you to lose your childhood but I've always looked out for you and Ludwig. I warms my heart to know that Tino was able to give you that childhood. We're not really allowed to play with life and death but I figured they wouldn't notice if I did a small change. Give him a treat as a thank you for saving you and make sure he doesn't die again. I can't perform miracles all the time. I love you with all my heart and I'll always be with you._

_Love Vati_

__**Merry Christmas and a happy new year! I'll be taking a vacation until January but if you want a bonus I've posted a final story apart form this as well.**

** story/story_ ?storyid=8832095&chapter=1**

**DolmaafAmlod**


End file.
